Tempest Love
by Miss Ink
Summary: AU. re-posting. Doctor 10 meets Doctor 9 on a mysterious space station. Story also features Rose and Captain Jack, and my own OC.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: **I don't own Doctor Who. This story is re-loaded onto the net because I make a mistake and deleted it off my story list. I'm blaming it on lack of sleep. Anyway, I'm re-posting it for fans who still like it.

* * *

Chapter 1

The doors of the TARDIS flew open with a clang and out stepped the Doctor and he waved his arms out grandly as his campaign followed him from behind.

"Welcome, Rose to the year Colome, at least according to the Utopian calendar, on the planet Varia. The home of among other things to the universes' most fertile soil and the longest running bed and breakfast."

"So, how long has this bed and breakfast been around?"

"Oh, not that long by my standards, but I reckoned at least seven to eight hundred years."

"And you said they had the best sweets, right?"

Sighing, but soon recovering in a wide manic grim the Doctor exclaimed, "Yes, Rose. They've got the best confections around. They're award winning! They're made by this lovely couple. You wouldn't think it when you see them, but they have led quit the interesting life."

Rose smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Right, and we live such boring lives, traveling in our big blue box."

"Oi, I'm an authority when it comes to recognizing interesting people, Ms. Tyler, it—this isn't Varia. We're on a space station."

The Doctor walked up to a large window and saw that they were suspended in space in a large donut shaped space station that looked to be orbiting a green planet down below. They saw small ships zooming by back and forth from the planet and back.

"That there isn't even Varia. That's got to be Pendra, but I wasn't even aiming for Pendra."

Rose noticed the Doctor's troubled stare and went and to hold his hand. She gave him a light tug and said, "Come on then, it's not like ending up at the wrong place hasn't happened before. Come and lets take a look around."

Suddenly, armed soldiers surround them. The Doctor and Rose raise their arms in surrender, but soon they were confronted with a woman who emerged from the pack. She had long black hair and alien green eyes. They shimmer in the light and she gave the pair a smug smile.

"Who are you? How did you get here? And what are your intentions?"

The Doctor lowers his hands and smoothes the lapse on this leather jacket and gives the woman a beaming smile. He gives her an appraising look before he speaks.

"Well, Hello. I'm the Doctor and this Rose. We came to do a bit of shopping, now who are you?"

"I am Captain Tempest Love, head of security and I find it hard to believe that you are here to do some shopping."

Rose barely succeeded in stopping a giggle from leaving her mouth when she heard the Captain's name. She knew Jack would have a field day. A name like that just couldn't go unchallenged, but they were spared the ex-time agent's charm by previously dropping him off at requested pleasure planet.

However, Rose felt that this chat was going bad and decided to speak, she pointed to the Doctor and said, "But he's telling you the truth. It's just we got lost—"

"Oi! We are not lost. I know exactly where we are, Rose."

"We're lost. You are such a bloke!"

Yet, before the Doctor could counter Rose's remark, Captain Love interrupted for what she considered a lovers' spat. She turned her head down and raised her hand to halt their argument farther. As best as she could figure, they were most likely off-worlders who had come to buy Pendra's renowned healing herbs. They didn't seem like a threat—more like lost tourist.

"Stop. That's enough. Obviously, you're lost."

Rose exclaimed, "Thank you. See Doctor, even the love captain knows we're lost."

"Really Rose, I've been doing this for a long time, I know what I'm doing."

Rose simply responded with a smile and looked into his bright blue eyes. She swayed a bit, embarrassed to what she was about to say. Quietly she said, "There isn't anyone else I'd rather be lost with than with you."

Her response melted all the Doctor's fight and he smiled at her with all that he was worth.

"Me too."

Captain Love dismissed her men and coughed into her hand to draw their attention back to her. It seemed to shake the Doctor back from a spell he didn't even know he was falling under. He had to get his head back in the game. Right, alien world—Pendra. These people evolved from plant life and developed a market of herbal cures that helped all sorts of species across the galaxy. They had great serves for the right price. Also they were very advanced and long-lived, nearly as long as his people, but they didn't regenerate. No, they just sprout out new tissue like any plant and they were sent on their way.

Captain Love told the pair to follow her and she brought them to a waiting room filled with other aliens who were chatting about how to market and sell herbs. She swept her hand out in a welcoming gesture to the two as they entered.

"Please, make yourselves comfortable in our waiting room. The market will open shortly in half an hour. Until then, please enjoy our hospitality."

"Yes, we'll do."

However, just as they were about to mingle, Captain Love grabbed the Doctor by the arm. Softly, she said, "You still didn't say how you got on board this station, Doctor. Where are you docked? And what is the name of your people?"

The Doctor gave her a silly grin and wiped out his trusty physic paper and held it up to her gaze. The paper seemed to satisfy her, but she still gave him an odd look.

"See, everything in order. No need to fret. Will that be all? Or do you want to check my horoscope while you're at it?"

The Doctor was getting annoyed by Captain Love's persistence, but he knew she was only doing her job. Who was he to fault her for being a little too attentive? He generally liked people who asked questions. It meant they were thinking, and Pendra wasn't really a place known for people thinking outside the box. The long-lived aliens were almost as stuffy as Time Lords were. People who generally live a lot longer than everybody else tend to grow pretty big egos. Yet, the Doctor was totally unprepared for what she asked him next. She locked her eerie eyes with his and it almost felt like she was drawing him in.

"Are you a Time Lord?"

"What?"

"Don't try to fool me. My guards found your ship, that strange little blue box on the observation deck. Not to mention this odd piece of paper."

"Don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh please, you think you're the first Time Lord I ever met."

"What?"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

It took some persuasion, but the Doctor finally got Captain Love off his tail. She was pretty sure he was a Time Lord, but since it turned out she never actually met one, it was easy to deny the whole thing. Besides, it wasn't like it was a crime to be a Time Lord, at least not in intergalactic space.

After parade, after parade of auctions of strange herbs and roots, the Doctor had finally found something of interest in the mechanic's shop. He had found surprisingly good parts to fix the TARDIS with and was having a heady conversation with the shop's owner. Meanwhile, Rose was very much bore out of her mind and had gone wondering. She had ventured through several rooms and had ended up in a chapel. The chapel was strangely organic unlike the rest of the ship, but it was nice in that it reminded her of the TARDIS. She walked about the room and noticed a statue of a woman who had two hearts depicted on her chest that was holding a strange badge.

"That is an unusual statue."

Rose looked behind her to see it was Captain Love. She seemed over her fit and had now a far away look in her eye.

"Why is the stature strange? Who is she? Is she your god?"

"No, she isn't Pendra's god. Our goddess is a tree. The tree of life in which all our people came from. This is Bad Wolf. The Fortuna."

"I don't understand. What's Bad Wolf and what's Fortuna? Isn't that like, fate or something?"

"No one knows much about this statue, but some say she is connected to the Time Lords, but others think she is just a beauty from Prendra."

"She looks human to me, but we all look alike except for the eyes. Does it have something to do with the hearts?"

"Yes, the people of Pendra have two hearts."

Rose remembered the Doctor saying he had two hearts. She thought maybe there was something to this Rassilion thing after all. She decided it was time to do a bit of investigating. And perhaps this trip wouldn't be so bad with a mystery to solve. Rose smiled and ran her tongue across her teeth at the thought.

She turned to Love and said, "Tell me all about this two hearts thing and whatcha know about Rassilion visiting."

000000000

The Doctor couldn't believe it. She'd wondered off again. Soon he was going to have to go and buy that little ape a leash. However, as he dashed about the station he then realized that he had brought Rose to a rather boring place. He knew she didn't care much about over priced roots, but he still dragged her around anyway. It was only a matter of time until she ditched him at the shop. It was turning out to be his fault for not keeping an eye on her. And the more he walked the more he began to worry. She could have gotten into all sorts of trouble and it didn't help that he single handedly pissed-off the captain of the security either. In fact, he knew he ought to thank Rassilion that she didn't put them in jail for trespassing. Pendra was a strict place and weren't known for letting things slide. The Captain was right, he did have a lot of gall, but if she only knew how much, she'd have kittens.

After 15 minutes, the Doctor had officially given up trying to find Rose on his own and turned to a near by panel to do a little spock with the controls to find her. She was the only human on the station and the internal sensors should find her in minutes. He saw she was located in the chapel and once he pocketed his sonic screwdriver, he was off.

As the Doctor turned the corner to the church, he saw a man looking inside the chapel before he stopped and glanced his way then he proceeded to walk down the hall. There was something strange about the man. Why did he look in and not enter? What was he looking at? Maybe it was something, maybe it was nothing at all, but one thing he was sure he didn't like—he was too pretty.

The Doctor stormed in and shouted to Rose, "Where have you been? I've been walking all over this place looking for you. I've told you Rose. I've told you plenty of time, don't wonder off."

He saw that Rose was perfectly safe and seated at the pews with the charming Captain Love. They seemed to be hitting it off and the Doctor felt his temper flare because he had worked himself up with his imagination over Rose's sake.

"What are you two best mates now?"

"No, it's that the Captain here has been telling me about Rassilion's visit and how they all got two hearts."

"What do you mean two hearts?"

"They all got two hearts Doctor. All the Pendra people do. Love here was telling me that the second heart is like a big back up machine like in a computer, that when they got hurt it tells their body to fix it from the blue prints its got inside. She said that bloke, Rassilion came not to buy medicine, but to study up on healing like they do."

"Sort of sounds like your talking about regeneration."

"Regener-what?"

"Just never mind about that. What else did you talk about?"

Rose slightly lowered her head when she answered the Doctor next and he knew that wasn't a good sign. She replied, "Doctor, its those words again, Bad Wolf, there here. Look, that statue over there, Love was saying that it had something to do with Time Lords cause of that thing she's holding in her hands."

The Doctor walked towards the statue and noticed she was holding the seal of Rassilion.

The Doctor shook his head in disbelief and said, "This shouldn't be here. Why is Bad Wolf following us? And another thing…" The Doctor turned towards the alien Captain and captured her with his gaze. "You. That name of yours, 'Tempest Love' that's suspicious too. The Love Storm or the one who loves storms…I feel like somebody is setting this whole thing up."

Rose was utterly confused and it scared her to see the Doctor was just as lost. She walked by his side and said, "What do you mean, someone is settling this up? And how does Love fit into this? Are you saying she fannies you?"

"No, coarse not. That's rubbish. I'm guessing she's more of a messenger addressed to the On Coming Storm."

"But I don't get it, what's the message? Was it her telling us about Bad Wolf?"

"It might be, but—Captain?"

"Yes?"

"You're a security guard. What are you securing and against who?"

"The security protects the visitors from attacks from both inside and out, but recently we've had threats from terrorist."

"I don't just it, Doctor. Why would terrorist attack a ship that sells herbs?"

"Rose, they aren't just herbs. They extent longevity and only wealthy people can afford that kind of product. There must be a whole lot of angry poor people wanting to shut this place down."

"You said it wasn't real."

"Rose, these herbs can add decades, if not longer to a person's life. It's sad really, people killing each other just so they can live a bit longer."

Love put her hand on the Doctor's arm and said, "There is a lot you're not telling me. You know of Bad Wolf. You said it has something to do with you. What did you mean?"

"I don't know. It's been following me and Rose all throughout time and space, the same words over and over."

Suddenly, there was a loud crash and the entire station began to rumble. Sirens began to sound and the lights in the hall shone flashing red lights. Then a mechanical voice sounded over on a speaker and announced, "Please, remain calm. All guest and personal are required to move to the main hall. The staff will then issue instructions on emergency evaluation procedures. Nonessential items will not be permitted."

Rose shouted over the repeated message, "What's going on?"

Love walked up to a nearby control panel and it showed a map of the ship.

"There was some kind of explosion in engineering. The power core is cracked and we are running on emergency power."

"Oh, my god. Is the whole ship going to blow or something?"

"Nothing so dramatic. The station is blocked into didn't pressurized compartments to keep in atmosphere. And the station can function on emergency power for two weeks. The evaluation is to insure nobody gets hurts in any accidents. What really worries me is who made that explosion in the first place."

The Doctor quickly scanned the ship's map and smiled brightly at Rose who grinned in return. This was what they were about, running form danger and adventure.

He said to Love, "Right, let's go."

"What? No, you bunch of busy bodies aren't going anywhere. It's my job to head the security on this station, not yours. You head to the main hall and evaluate like the rest. Besides, you Doctor are injured by that fall and should have it looked at."

At Love's words, Rose rushed to turn the Doctor saw he had a cut on his left hand.

"Oh, Doctor."

"It's nothing. It's just a scratch, really, Rose I've got superior Time Lord physiology. This isn't going to slow me down."

Rose had completely ignored him and asked Love if she had a first aid kit. She gave the Doctor a Jackie Tyler stare to shut up.

"No open cuts Doctor. I'm going to wrap it up."

Captain Love sighed. These little love moments were slowing her down. Why did they have to be so stubborn? She pressed the con on her wrist and told her team to monitor the evacuation and to begin an investigation on the explosion. She reported a slight delay and to proceed without her. Love then forcefully pulled the Doctor's hand out from Rose's gentle grasp and covered the wound with her free hand. Love slowly began to rub the Doctor's hand and gradually it began to heat as a light glow shone under her caress. Then, she released his hand and it was magically good as new.

Wide eyed with wonder, Rose asked, "How'd you do that?"

"Some people from Pendra have the ability to heal others through touch or through blood transplants."

The Doctor gave Love a curious look. Healing yourself on Pendra was average stuff, but healing others was extremely rare and especially on the level Love was talking about. Blood transfusions were tricky business if you didn't know what you were doing. The Pendra people had descended through trees and their fluids were toxic if not handled with care. It was odd that Pendra would allow such a rare gifted person to work at a station at all. The only thing the Doctor could conclude was that Love came from a high born family.

"There, now that's fixed. I needed you both to evacuate, now. Move."

The Doctor replied, "Ok."

Rose exclaimed, "What?"

"It's alright. Come along, Rose. Time to let Captain Love do her job."

00000000000000

As the Doctor and Rose walked down the hall, she couldn't help feeling shocked. She never in a million years would think the Doctor would give up. He just said ok to being safe and evacuating. She hurried up to his pace.

"Doctor? I don't get. Why didn't you—I don't know, state the Shadow Proclamation or something?"

"Na, it wouldn't have worked. Shadow Proclamation doesn't have claim in Pendra space."

"…Oh, why not?"

"Cause they never joined. They got their own law around here. But, seriously Rose did you really think I'd throw in the towel?"

Rose smiled up at the Doctor and took his hand.

"Nope, you're too mad."

He knew he shouldn't doubt her. Since, the day he met her, she had trusted him and it made him feel like he could soar. She was so accepting it was startling. He didn't do a thing to deserve her faith, but he knew he would do all in his power to keep it for however long he could. Sure, the people in his past had believed in him, but after the Time War he didn't think he would ever again be the receiver of such unyielding faith. He felt his hearts swell with an overwhelming depth of appreciation for his Rose that on impulse he brought up their joined hands to his lips and kissed the back of her palm.

"Rose Tyler, if I get anymore madder it'll be because of you."

Momentarily, she wasn't sure how to react. The Doctor had never kissed her hand like that. Sometime he might kiss her head like a child and usually when they'd finished saving the day. He never kissed her hand for the hell of it and never in this "lady-like" way. Was he flirting? On occasion, they flirted and teased. They always had a brilliant time together, but this was different, this was tender and…loving, but Rose didn't know what kind of love it was. Was it the love of a friend? Or was it more? Or was it only her thinking it could be?

It was getting frustrating because she just didn't know; yet she was too afraid to ask. Really, what was she supposed to do? She couldn't out of nowhere ask the Doctor, hey, do you fancy me? And on top of that say, I want to know cause I think I might be interested? Seriously, she couldn't do that. She wasn't Jack.

Suddenly, everything went black. It wasn't just the lights. It was everything. The engines shut and the air vents discontinued to turn. It was as quiet as death and pitcher than night.

"Doctor! What's going on? What's happened to the lights?"

"I don't know, but I can't hear a thing, every things is off line."

"Every things off? Then how come we still got gravity? I thought there's no gravity in space?"

"Good question Rose, but the gravity in this station is created by the force of the station's rotation. You saw the place is shaped like a donut. It's like a big wheel turning, but it won't be forever. Solar winds and the planet's gravity will eventually pull it off coarse—but not to worry still got some time before that. What I don't get is what these terrorist want?"

"Do they want the station?"

"No, this station isn't that special and usually terrorist want money or want to make a statement. Letting the passengers evacuate rules out both. What we need to do is figure out what they want. What is valuable on this station that hasn't already left?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

During the power outage, Captain Love was walking quickly down the halls to engineering to see what her team found out about the investigation, but now she had to stop. Finding herself in the dark, she let her anger boil over.

"By the stars! If it isn't one thing, its another!"

Love felt around her belt until she found her flashlight. It took her a minute to locate the twitch and turned it on. When she held it up she saw someone in the dark and shrieked.

The stranger approached causally and said, "Really, no need to scream. It's only me."

"Who are you?"

"Oh, sorry that was rude of me wasn't it? Hello, I'm the Doctor."

"Who are you?"

The Doctor dropped his broad smiled and extended hand at the repeated question. He shook his head and explained, "No, no, no. You see, that is my name, really, _The Doctor._ Like Madonna, just one name. It saves up on more syllabus."

"That's strange."

"Well, not really—if you think about it."

"No, you're the second person I've met that goes by that name."

"What? When?"

Love was about to answer, but stopped. This wasn't the time for a chat. She had a job to do as head of security. In a loud voice she ordered, "Enough!"

"Oh…now who's being rude."

"I am Captain Tempest Love, head of Pendra space station security. You should have been evacuated with the rest of the guest. Now, you will come with me."

"I'm sure I would love to go walking with you, Lady Love, but where would you be taking me?"

"I would have taken you the main hall to be placed in the escape pod, but since there is no power, you will have to accompany me to engineering."

"Brilliant! Aye, aye Captain!"

"By the stars! Aren't you full of jest."

"Ooh, I like that, 'jest.' Personally, I like merriment or joviality. However, that's a bit archaic, isn't it? Out of the times, really. Who says jest anymore anyway?"

Then, much to Love's relief her wrist con activated and she pressed her communicator on. She said, "I read you."

"Captain, by the stars, you're alright. I've tried to contact the others, but no one has reported in."

"What's your location?"

"Engineering, but no one else is here."

"What do you mean? Report?"

"Captain, after the damage was inspected, team-1 was sent to collected data of possible leads. And team-2 was supposed to head to engineering to await your orders after securing the guests to the escape pod. However, no one from team-2 has returned and team-1 hasn't been reporting in."

The Doctor asked Love, "How many personal do you have?"

"Thirty, ten to each team, but team-3 is on the escape pod to watch over the guests."

"And where is the escape pod headed?"

"Nowhere. Guests aren't allowed on Pendra. It isn't advertised, but they are subject to confinement as possible terrorist."

"Well, that's a good percussion. But who would want to attack this ship? What makes this place so important? It's just a bunch of herbs. Captain, what's the most important thing on this ship?"

"Nothing, just herbs."

"What? No, think! There's got to be something!"

"Doctor, this station is built to accommodate off-world guests and has been built specifically to not hold any technological advancements outside of standard. It's made to be comfortable, not flashy. Even the damn engine is below standard compared to what we can build. Only the selling of herbs is all this station is supposed to do. In fact, no ship is even allowed to park here if it isn't from Pendra."

"Then, what about herbs?"

"Nothing new."

"Then, what is new around here?"

"…Well, you're new."

"What?"

"You aren't with the other guests and you don't seem stupid enough to be lost. And you don't seem interested in herbs or you would have been anxious for the market to re-open. You aren't even scared of this chaos. It looks to me, you are more than who you seem."

The Doctor broke his gaze with the Captain and nervously pulled his ear. Love had him concerned. She was a smart girl, top banana—but if she only knew how close she was to hitting the truth it would probably frighten her to death. She didn't know he _was_ chaos. He was the Bringer of Death, the Time Lord, the On Coming Storm—wait, storm—tempest—Tempest Love—the love storm. She was supposed to love storms, she was supposed to love chaos. It was there in the chapel. A woman who had two hearts that had hair that was as wild as a storm. Time didn't quit seem right then. And what was it she said? There was someone else who had his name. Someone she had met today.

"Captain, you're going to have to trust me. I'm on your side. I want to get to the bottom of this as much as you. Do you trust me?"

"No."

"What? You're not even going to think about it? Just, 'No' without even a debate? Of course we've just met, but really I haven't done anything wrong. In fact, most of the time I'm right. I'm hardly— "

"Trust is earned, not given."

"Can't you even give me the benefit of the doubt? A leap of faith?"

"I am."

"…Oh, well good, but, to be clear you don't trust me, but you're—what exactly?"

"Giving you a chance until I deem you unworthy."

"That's a bit pessimistic."

"Look, it hasn't exactly been a fantastic day. I'm responsible for this station and so far, there has been a mysterious explosion, the engines have stopped and my teams are missing. And now, I'm talking to a complete stranger who wants to know everything. I would be a pretty poor captain if I didn't think you were suspicious. Who's to say you aren't a part of all this?"

"Fair enough. Yes, I understand your point, but firstly I want to know who was this other Doctor you met before? What did he look like?"

"Didn't you hear a word I just—"

"WOOOO! WOOOOO!"

Unfortunately, Love was interrupted by a strange sound. The eerie sound was echoing from down the hall and coming towards them. The Doctor grabbed hold of Love and tried to pull her behind him, but she stood her ground and drew a blade. Then, from out of the darkness they saw two flashing rays of light shine like searchlights in the night. They heard the sound of footsteps drawing nearer and the Doctor aimed his screwdriver in the air.

Then, the Doctor heard a sound he thought he would never hear again. He heard girlish giggling and knew it was her. He felt his hearts drop to the ground and stood transfixed as he saw her skip around the bend. It was her. It was _Rose_. She was so full of life and she looked just as he had remembered, all pink and yellow. She looked brilliant. However, he heard another voice and it made him grow still.

"Rose, really. Howling like a banshee isn't helping."

"Come on, Doctor. You're just cross cause I scared you good."

"In your dreams, Rose Tyler."

The Doctor stopped when he noticed the Love and the stranger standing in the hall. He took in the stranger from head to toe and realized who he was instantly. It was _him—_the too-pretty man standing outside of the chapel before was himself.

"What are you doing here?"

Captain Love felt cursed. She not only had one troublemaker now; she had three. She was questioning why she even bothered to be head of security if these drifters kept popping up all over the place.

She grabbed everyone's attention when she shouted, "More importantly, why are you two here? Do you drifters like trouble?"

Rose answered, "It's not like that. We got lost when the power died and as for trouble, it seems to find us."

(9) "Yup, but honestly, Rose here is jeopardy friendly."

"I am not!"

Love shouted in annoyance, "Hush! Come along. We have to restore power to the station."

(10) "Splendid, right lets get going!"

The Doctor (10) thanked Rassilion he was able to dodge talking to his pervious self. With any luck he might be able to avoid talking to him at all, although given his luck he was sure it was only a matter of time. The leather clad man kept steeling him with his blue eyed gaze. He knew who he was and probably knew Rose's presence affected him. He just couldn't stop looking at her. She was here and so close and yet, she wasn't his, not really. She belonged with him. He saw his past self holding her hand tightly in his grasp in a silent claim. He had forgotten how possessive he used to be. He wondered why she let him hold her so close.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

At engineering, everything was a mess. The explosion had damaged several controls, but all the main systems looked fine though dead. Nothing worked and only the glow from several self-powered lights lit the room. Love came in calling her crewman, but the place was deserted. She entered several of the smaller control rooms, but still no one was there.

"There's no one here."

(10) "What do you mean no one's here? Where's your man on the con?"

"He isn't here."

(9) "Is there some place he could have gone? Or wondered off? You can never stop companions from doing that, wondering off."

Rose exclaimed, "Oi!"

Love ignored the exchange and quickly ripped open a control panel and began tinkering with the wires. As she worked she said, "No. My crewmen are well trained. And I know Officer Promise for years. He has a cool head. He knows to report in first before investigating."

Rose tilted her head and asked, "You lot have strange names, your Love and his is Promise?"

"That's right: Promise, Praise, Homage, Grace, Glee, Victory, Valor, Faith and Worth. That's my team. Names of things you might try to up hold, but you can't actually have in your hands."

(10) "Well, that's kind of nice. Wonderfully poetic."

Love rose from her place by the control and replied, "I can't seem to get this thing to work. Some how the emergency power has been drained. I'm going to have to try and send a message to HQ."

(9) "And what's that lot going to do if they get here?"

Love said. "Probably, send top level guards to the station and put it on lock down until things get straighten out."

Rose asked, "So, someone is going to come and rescue us?"

Love answered, "Yes, once I patch in a message, but I'm worried about the missing men. No one is answering my con. Something is definitely wrong."

(9) "Agreed. We ought to try and figure out what happened to the missing power. Whoever is attacking this station has probably rerouted it. If we can get it back, we could find your people with the internal sensors."

Love said, "That's a good plan, but keep in mind that since the power is out, the air filters aren't running."

Rose shouted, "Oh my god! Are we going to run out of air? But this place is huge. Won't that take days? I mean, all the other guest are gone."

(10) "Spot on, Rose Tyler! It will take days, but I think Love here is talking about heated air vents. This place will cool gradually without power."

Rose: "Hang on. I don't remember telling you my name. How'd you know it?"

The brown-eyed Doctor went pale. He tried to recover the slip. He uttered, "Oh—well—I heard---I heard your friend say your name. And it's a lovely name, really. Rose Tyler. It just rolls off the tongue. It's not as poetic as Lady Love, but still—"

Rose: "Liar."

(10) "What? No!"

(9) "Oh, give it a rest. There's no point in denying it."

Rose: "Whatcha mean?"

(9) "Rose, he's me. When Time Lords get hurt they don't die. They regenerate. They grow a new body. And this pretty boy is the new model. I guess it can't be too bad, but I'm not looking forward to nattering on like a loon."

(10) "I do not natter on. I'll have you know I have the gift of the gab. And as for being a pretty boy, Rose never had a problem with the new me."

(9) "No surprise there. She collects them, just didn't know I'd be part of the club."

Rose: "What do you mean he's you? He doesn't look anything like you."

(9) "Yeah, he's me. You're the next one?

(10) "Yup."

Rose: "Seriously? That's so…alien."

Slowly, Rose walked up to the wild haired Doctor and looked into his wise dark eyes. It felt like time had slowed. It felt like she was peering into his soul and he knew if anyone could, it was her. He could feel her breath on his face as she tentatively placed her warm hand over one of his hearts and gently caressed his chest to feel the other. He swallowed nervously and held himself absolutely still. She was so close and he ached to embrace her. He never thought he'd feel her touch again. He wanted to commit ever moment to memory, but all too soon she moved away.

Quietly, he said, "Hello."

Rose smiled up to him with her tongue across her teeth and answered, "…Hello." The Doctor beamed a smile in return at the familiar exchange and touched her face. She was so fresh, so real and so alive. He was so enthralled that all he could say was her name.

(10) "Rose Tyler."

Rose let out a giggle and sadly the wild haired Doctor looked on as she turned her mirth to his pervious self. She stepped out of his reach and bounced to the leather-clad man's side and took his hand. She looked at him with such tender warmth that left him feeling raw. It unnerved him to see her acting so distant and seeking reassurance from someone else.

Rose: "Oh my god! I can't believe it. You're going to be pretty."

(9) "Oi! Are you saying I'm not?"

Rose laughed, "Not now, you aren't. But don't go changing anytime soon. You're just right as you are."

The Doctor gave Rose a goofy grim. She didn't know it, but she had said exactly what he wanted to hear. It bothered him that he never told her about regeneration, but Rose was such a trooper. She accepted it. She accepted him. And it was that wonderful human heart that made her utterly fantastic.

Love: "Aren't you meddling with time?"

The Captain's question lingered heavy in the air. The tenth Doctor sucked in a breath and tugged his ear. In some respects, no, scratch that, in ever respect Love was right. This situation was sort of a paradox and it sent Rose into a scare.

Rose: "Reaper?"

(10) "No! No, no, no…No reapers. It's different between him and me. We aren't exactly the same so there's no fear of touching each other to end the world. However, Love is right. We really shouldn't be meeting up like this. It causes all sorts of problems…and it does get rather confusing."

Rose: "Right, so what do I call you? I can't be calling you both Doctor."

(9) "I suppose for know we'll go by 9 and him, 10."

Rose: "Why 9 and 10?"

(10) "Cause that's what number regeneration we're at."

Rose: "Oh."

(9) "Right, know, why'd you come here? It couldn't have been an accident twice."

(10) "I picked up a strange signal on the TARDIS. It was some kind of temporal wave. I didn't know it was going to lead me here."

(9) "Temporal wave…"

Rose: "What's it mean?"

(9) "It means someone's been time traveling."

(10) "Yes! But the temporal signature was erratic which means whoever our mystery snatcher is; he's got a poor understanding of temporal navigation. It's like being on the road without a map and a license."

(9) "And that's dangerous, Rose. We're talking massive repercussions if something goes terribly wrong."

"Or great rewards, if things go wonderfully right," said a voice in the dark.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Stepping out of the dark shadows of the dimly lit room shone a pair of red glowing eyes that pierced the blackness like two ghostly stars in the night. A low rumbling laugh came deep from the stranger's throat and it chilled them all to the core. The leather-clad Doctor had sensed Rose's fear as she tightly clung to his hand and inch herself back. It angered him to see her so frightened by some nut missing a few screws. The Doctor wasn't about to be intimidated by being shut up in the dark or laughed at in a creepy voice.

He shouted in a dangerous voice to the snatcher, "Who are you? And what do you want?"

"I am Viper. And I want immortality."

(10) "Why would you want a thing like that? It's not like you can get it. Of course, if you take the herbs and medicines that the Pendra make you could live for a very long time, but nothing last forever. And what exactly would you do if you had an eternity? It'd be a bit boring. Not to mention lonely."

Love: "Enough! What have you done with my men?"

Viper: "They did not have what I want."

(9) "What do you want?"

Viper: "Immortality."

(9) "Yeah. We got that, but how does taking those men fit in? The people of Pendra live for a very long time, but they eventually die too."

Suddenly, Viper let loose a long howling laugh and remerge from the shadows to reveal he was armed with a loaded gun. He pointed the pistol squarely at the ninth Doctor's chest. He wore a casual grin and was dressed in a long white medical coat. He was old and worn with age, but neatly groomed. He shook his head in pitied disapproval before he spoke.

Viper: "You poor fool! You don't understand. The people of Pendra are an isolated community. They hold their secrets tighter than you think. Some of their kind have the ability to regenerate their cells endlessly and the source of that amazing ability stems from the root—the heart, and I aim to have that heart for myself."

(10) "You can't! That's murder! You can't go popping out people's hearts nellie-willie and see which ticker ticks on forever. And besides, you're not even from this time. Why even bother time traveling to snatch somebody's heart?"

Viper: "I am not Pendra. I am Utorian. It would take me a life time to travel from my home-world to here, but obstacles like time and space know no bounds with time travel. And nothing will stop me from achieving my dream. One of those double-hearted souls contains my immortality and I have come too far and have done far too much to let it slip through my hands."

(9) "But you don't know what you're doing! Changing history goes beyond your personal god-quest."

Viper: "I suppose you have never heard of my people. We the Utorians, pride ourselves on our technology and science. Nothing is beyond our reach. They say we are the makers of miracles."

At Viper's words, The Doctor could see the self-righteous arrogance of his ways. He had long ago seen his own people succumb to the same vice of pride and narrow-mindedness. He knew Viper saw no wrongdoing in what he had done. He couldn't see, and really how could he. He wasn't a Time Lord. He couldn't see the timelines. He was simple a man—a man afraid of death. He didn't know how sometimes living was a curse. There wasn't a day that goes by that the Doctor did not question why he lived—why he survived. It was only Rose alone that drove away his nightmares and poured happiness into his hearts.

(9) "You arrogant bastard!"

BANG!

The trigger was pulled and the room fell silent.

00000000000000000

It was like a terrible dream. The leather-clad man stood stone still as he saw a flash of golden hair pass across his face. She silently turned and looked into his eyes with utter shock. He saw the color drain from her cheeks and the blood seep through her shirt in a large red stain.

Rose: "…Doctor?"

(9) "Rose!"

The Doctor caught Rose in his arms as he gently laid her down on the floor. He placed his hand over her wound and tried to stop the bleeding. There was so much blood he was worried she would go into shock. He prayed to all the gods in the universe if they would keep Rose Tyler safe.

000000000000000000

(10) "No…this can't be…this isn't meant to happen. Rose Tyler isn't meant to die—not like this. Rose's supposed to be alive and with her family. Rose's supposed to save mankind. This is all wrong."

The brown eyed man saw his past self work feverishly to save Rose from the gun shot wound, but he saw that the blood was flowing too quietly. The bullet must have pierced her heart. It would take too long to get her back to the TARDIS. There wasn't enough time—there was _never_ enough time.

0000000000000000000

As soon as the shot was fired, Captain Love sprang into action. She rushed to Viper's side and skillfully cuts his wrist with her blade. The gun dropped with a clang onto the metal floor and Love quickly kicked it away, but at that moment Viper reached into his coat and plunged a dagger into the Captain's side that sent her screaming to her knees. Viper then took his chance and dashed away back into the shadows.

The tenth Doctor tried to catch him in mid stride, but it was too late. He looked to Love to see if she needed help, but she shouted, "GO! Get Viper! I'll be fine."

The Doctor gave Love a slight nod and took off after the snatcher.

(9) "Captain! I need your help!"

Love staggered towards the pair on the ground and dropped down by Rose's side. The ninth Doctor gazed at Love with pleading eyes. He scanned her and saw the dagger embedded in her side.

(9) "Captain…"

Love: "Listen up! I'm not going to die. It hurts like hell, but I'll live. Now, take hold of the handle and get this damn thing out."

The ninth Doctor reached over to Love and did what she said. He gave her one last look to prepare her for the pain. She shut her eyes and held her breath before nodding in approval. Then, as fast as he could the Doctor pulled the dagger out and loudly dropped it to the floor.

Love felt herself shutter. She gripped the Doctor's arm to steady herself before she finally spoke.

Love: "Now, Doctor. I think I can save your friend."

(9) "What do you need?"

Love: "I need you to go and get the med.-kit in the other room. I need to get the needle."

(9) "Right."

Captain Love breath deeply to try and get her mind of the pain. The knife wound wasn't fatal, but it pierced her lung. It was going to take at least an hour to heal. Then, she felt Rose reach up and grab her hand.

Rose: "…Are y-you all right?"

Love: "Yes. I'll be fine. I'm like a weed. It's really hard to kill me."

Rose: "…Am I…"

Love: "No. It's not over yet."

Instantly, the Doctor was back. He ran and kneed by Rose's side and opened the kit. He pulled out a syringe and pulled the cap free from the tube. He handed it to the Captain and she took it from his hand. However, she stopped and gave the Doctor a serious stare.

Love: "Doctor, I don't know anything about Rose's biology."

(9) "She's human. Now heal her!"

Love: "But, I don't know humans! I could poison her!"

(9) "Captain! There isn't anything I can do! She's running out of time. Heal her!"

Love: "Alright!"

Captain Love plunged the syringe into her left heart with a violent gab and slowly began to pull the life-blood out. The liquid was strange and green. The Captain took the needle and injected it into the site of Rose's wound and almost instantaneously the opening began to heal. The torn skin began to knit and slowly her color began to return. However, Rose did not stir.

Love rose to her knees and placed her head over Rose's chest to listen for her heart—there was nothing. She then reached over and tried to find her pulse, still nothing. Soon, Love pulled back and began to perform CPR.

Love: "Come on!"

The Doctor rummaged through his pockets until he pulled out his screwdriver and he too leaned over Rose's lifeless form. He sharply told Love to move. He put the instrument to her chest and sent an electric shock to her heart. He quickly tried to find her pulse, but than gave her another jolt.

(9) "Come on, Rose. Come on, you can't end this way!"

The Doctor gave Rose another round of CPR, till at last she gasped.

The Doctor stopped and gathered her up in his embrace. He held her tight and buried his face into her neck. Overwhelmed with joy, he planted kisses over her neck, head and face.

(9) "Rose, oh Rassilion, I thought I lost you."

Rose: "…never."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The tenth Doctor ran after Viper through the dark halls. He couldn't see him in the shadows of the silent station, but he followed him blindly through the corridors and tried to hear his foot falls on the metallic ground. He followed him until at last he emerged into the large market-hall. The emptiness of the space made the room feel like a cavern and the Doctor had no idea where he had gone.

"Viper! I know you're in here."

"I've heard the whispers that chatter on in your dark mind. They tell me you are the On Coming Storm, the Bringer of Death—the Time Lord, but death will never claim me. I am like the snake found deep in the belly of earth. I will find the plant that Gilgameshsought to cure himself of the reaper's reach and I too will steal immortality while he sleeps."

"Viper, this has to stop. You can't take Love's heart. I won't let you get away with this."

"…Rassilion did not care. Why should I?"

The Doctor stopped dead in his tracks. He wondered how Viper knew Rassilion's name, but than he realized what he had said—_the whispers that chatter on in his dark mind_—yes, Utorian—Viper was psychic. It made things awfully sticky, but it didn't explain what he meant. When did Rassilion ever tinker with hearts?

"What are you talking about?"

"Double-hearts, Doctor. Double-hearts were what your great founder sought on Pendra years ago. He was conducting research on regeneration. He studied the Pendra and graphed their genetic superiority to his own kind. It was no great feet for someone already involved in genetic engineering. From what I understand from you, they're called looms. Yes, your thoughts tell me more than you would ever hope. I know now that my ambitions can be made real."

"No! That's a lie! Rassilion was never on Pendra."

However, Viper didn't answer the tenth Doctor back. Instead, the leather-clad man spoke and said, "He's right. Rassilion was on Pendra."

(10) "What?"

(9) "It's true. Rassilion did come to Pendra. The evidence of it is here, at the chapel. He isn't lying, but that doesn't make what he's doing any less wrong, so don't feed me any of that garbage about poor pitiful you. You're a right bastard thinking you could cheat death cause you're scared. You're so scared that you've got no respect for life. But, you're wrong thinking that death is the big bad scary here. There are far more worse things in life than death."

The ninth Doctor took his sonic sonic screwdriver from his pocket and aimed it at a nearby control panel and suddenly the market-hall was bathed in light. He then casually tossed it in the air and snatched in back in his hand. He gave Viper a manic grin and strode to the brown haired man, but his manner was deceptive. Underneath the façade he was boiling with rage.

(9) "You think you're so clever don't you? Sneaking onto this station, making an explosion and chasing away unwanted guests, just so you could be alone with a crew full of Pendra's best and brightest. So you could time your time choosing the best candidate and do some heart surgery and then off you go, on a half-baked time-ship. But, you didn't count on me and that was a mistake, but your biggest mistake was shooting Rose! And I absolutely won't let you get away with that!"

The tenth Doctor felt his blood ran cold as he heard the ninth Doctor's words and saw the blood on his hands and shirt. Oh, Rassilion, he had hoped that his past self had kept her safe. In the past, he had always managed to keep her safe. When the gun shot he didn't know if she was alive or dead. He just ran like a bat out of hell after Viper. What if Rose had died? What if she was gone right at this moment? Forever?

As he looked at his old self, he saw the storm swirl mad in his blue eyes and the hatred in his voice. He didn't remember any of this. He knew this wasn't supposed to happen. Rose was supposed to be here. She was supposed to stop him from going too far. She was supposed to save him.

(9) "No second chances."

The tenth Doctor suddenly reached out and grabbed leather-clad man by the arm and gripped it tight. He tried to force the man to look him in the eye, but he didn't turn from Viper's gaze. The tenth Doctor was overwhelmed with fear at what he would do—at what he might regret.

(10) "What are you doing?"

(9) "What needs to be done."

(10) "But this is wrong! Rose can't be dead!"

Viper: "Enough! You can't harm me. Your hatred and confusion are nothing."

Slowly, Viper raised his gun and took aim at the leather-clad man. He was about to fire, when Love came and threw her dagger and pierced his arm. Viper let loose a painful cry and dropped his weapon to the ground. The ninth Doctor ran up and took the gun and knocked Viper over the head with the handle.

The tenth Doctor was shocked. He was so sure that his past self had gone over the edge.

(9) "Good work, Captain."

Love: "Likewise."

(10) "Wait a minute. You planned all that?"

(9) "Yeah. Wasn't it fantastic!"

(10) "You could have let me in on it?"

(9) "Wasn't enough time. Besides, had to distract the physic snake somehow."

(10) "Right. But, where's Rose? Is she—"

Love: "She's fine. She was just helping to cue the lights from an energy feed."

(10) "I thought all the power was rerouted by Viper."

(9) "It is, but I had the TARDIS supply the power to light up the hall. Had to scare Viper into thinking I had some kind of upper hand. I had Rose stay at engineering and monitor the energy feed cause Pendra and Time Lord technology isn't actually compatible."

(10) "Well…all's well that ends well. I guess I'll be heading back to the TARDIS."

Love: "I hardly call this experience a pleasant ending."

(9) "Captain, drop it. You've got your man. You can't do anything about what's happened to your crew."

Love stopped and shouted at the ninth Doctor with unshed tears in her eyes, she said, "You don't understand! They were children compared to me. I've lived for nearly 600 years and they were barely passed a 100. I was responsible for them. How can I tell their clans?"

The leather-clad man didn't know what to say. Love may not know it, but he did understand. He understood all too well the meaning of loss and regret. She was experiencing survivor's guilt. A guilt he lived with everyday as the last of the Time Lords. He knew what it was like to be responsible. What it meant. What a burden it could be. She didn't know how he envied her that she even had families to go back to. She may not realize it, but Love wasn't alone.

The tenth Doctor tentatively gathered Love in his arms and soothingly rubbed her back.

(10) "Shush. Love, I'm sorry. I was being rude. Don't blame yourself. You couldn't have prevented what Viper did. You stopped him and he won't hurt anyone again."

The Captain took in a deep breath and gently back away from the Doctor's embrace.

Love: "Thank you."

0000000000000000000

Engineering:

Rose: "So Doctor, what I'd miss? Did you catch the bad guy?"

(9) "We've got nothing to worry about with him. Love's got him all tied up and is contacting the authorities."

Rose: "…Good."

(9) "Rose, you all right? Feeling, ok?"

Rose: "I'm fine, just—the other Doctor, do you think he'll be ok?"

(9) "What do you mean?"

Rose: "It's just that he's all alone and he—he may not show it, but when I was looking at him, he seemed really sad."

(9) "I'm sure he'll be alright."

Rose: "Doctor, I know he hasn't got his Rose. And I know I would never leave you, so something bad must have happened. Something must have happened to me. I must have di—"

(9) "No! Rose, just because you aren't with me in the future, doesn't mean you've died."

Rose: "But you don't know that! I almost died today!"

(9) "No, Rose. You're far too precious for me to let you die."

When she heard those words, Rose smiled with pure joy and raised her hand to caress the Doctor's cheek. Gradually, he let his eyes close at her warm touch and slowly he turned his head to allow her fingers to graze his lips. At her palm he placed a tender kiss. He tangled his hands into her golden hair and brushed her locks from her face. Then, softly their lips met and kissed.

(9) "Rose, I love you."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The brown haired Doctor sat down in one of the pews inside the space station's chapel and looked at the statue called Bad Wolf. It unnerved him to know that reminisces of such power still lingered throughout time. Pieces lay waiting in the shadows like pieces of a lost and lonely heart still trailing its remains across the fabric of time. Why was she still trying to warn him? What was she telling him?

She was like a golden goddess. His own private guardian angle with the power over life and death, but she was wasting her talents because she did it all for _him_. She did it all for his sake. Her human heart only wanted to protect him. He didn't deserve her protecting—not when he couldn't even protect himself. He thought he had done the best he could for her, his Rose, by allowing her the chance to having the family she was deprived, but no, she wanted him. She wanted _this_—_him_.

It was cruel to see her again. It was cruel to watch her, and see her laugh and just hear her talk again. Why did fate have to be so cruel to lead him back again to Rose, but it wasn't really Rose, not his Rose. She didn't remember him. She didn't know him. They were perfect strangers--the Rose of the past. Yet, it wasn't the past he knew. No, this was different. Nothing that had happened today had happened to him before.

It was all new. It scared him because it was new and shouldn't be. Time was being bent and twisted and changed. It was unnatural, yet seamless and it should be the biggest paradox in the galaxy, yet it wasn't and he was certain, dead certain, that it was her who had done it. Bad Wolf was the one pulling the strings—but why?

The Doctor huffed out a breath and ran his hand over his wild hair. This was getting nowhere. The scan he done of the statue revealed nothing. He decided to head towards engineering for a chat with his old-self. He figured two heads were better than one even if it was still technically his own.

* * *

When the Doctor did entered engineering he was shocked at what he saw. Rassilion, it couldn't be true! He saw his previous-self kissing Rose Tyler.

He had his hands woven into her blond hair and she one hand pressed on his face and the other on his back. They seemed suspended in time locked in each other's embrace. Their eyes were closed as their lips met blindly and it was the picture of utter sweetness.

And then, Rassilion! He said the words.

"_Rose, I love you." _

By the Face of Boe! What was he thinking?

"Doctor!"

The pair jumped a part and faced the brown-haired man. His eyes were wide and he staked up the leather-clad man in three quick strides and spoke in an unwavering tone.

"I need to speak with you."

The ninth Doctor turned to Rose and gave her a gentle smile. He took her hand and gave it a squeeze before letting it go.

"Wait for me back at the TARDIS."

She silently gave him a nod and left the room. She saw the wild look in the other man's face and knew that whatever he had to say it wasn't going to be good.

As soon as Rose left and the tenth Doctor was certain she was out of earshot he launched a verbal attack on the leather-clad man.

(10) "What were you thinking? No! That's the thing isn't it? You weren't thinking, were you? You just decide to go off and kiss bloody Rose Tyler and be damned the consequences. If there was anyone I figured who'd know about consequences here I thought it'd be you."

(9) "I don't need lecturing from the likes of you! I know what I'm doing."

(10) "Do you? Don't you remember? Humans don't regenerate. They decay and die. It wouldn't be fair to Rose."

(9) "…Yeah. You're right. I'm a right selfish sod. The universe just takes and takes, till there's nothing left, but the universe gave me Rose. And since you're me—you used to be me, you should know I can't do without Rose."

(10) "But she doesn't have forever! You know how this is going to end."

The ninth Doctor crossed his arms over his chest. He knew that Rose didn't have forever, he wasn't a complete idiot, but it still didn't change the fact that he wanted to spend every waking hour in her presence. Didn't the pretty-boy know that she saved him—and not just that first time with the mannequins, she was saving him everyday. She was saving him from nightmares and chaos just because she believed in him. She didn't have a reason to believe in a man, who didn't sometimes believe in himself, but she did and that was all that stood before him and despair. It was her faith that made her so precious.

(9) " I love her."

(10) "Is that it? When Rose is old and gray and you haven't changed a day will that be enough? When she wants a family or children or a normal life will that be enough? If she decides to leave will love be enough?"

(9) "You're a damn coward! I'm not going to live my life in fear of what-ifs or maybes cause I know, right here and now that I love Rose Tyler. And if you're here telling me I can't than the thing I fear most isn't a broken heart, its knowing that one day I'll regenerate to you and I'll stop believing in her."

The brown-hair man felt like a shot had just shattered his hearts. It couldn't be true. Had he stopped believing in Rose Tyler? Was that what Bad Wolf was telling him?

Why was his previous-self able to say the words? In the past he knew he never had the chance to say them. He never dared to say them—but the need he remembered. He remembered needing Rose like he needed air. It was possessive how much he needed her. After he had regenerated he remembered feeling changed. He didn't need Rose like he had in the past. She had influenced him—brighten his soul. The man standing in front of him was still raw from the Time War—but was he?

Never in a million years did he ever dream of saying those words out loud. He couldn't afford such lose if he laid himself that exposed. This man was different.

(10) "Something's not right."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

When Rose left the Doctors to talk she decided to go look for Love for a little girl-talk. It'd been a while since she had a chance to talk to her mate Shareen and what had happened with her and the Doctor was something she knew she could not talk about with her Mum. Her Mum would probably slap the poor Doctor into the next dimension if she knew.

Rose found Love finishing up her message on the con with HQ. The alien captain leaned back in her chair and stretched back into the seat. She ran her fingers through her long black hair and closed her eerie green eyes.

Rose tentatively knocked on one of the controls to get her attention.

"Hello."

"Oh, hello Rose. Take a seat."

"Thanks. So, what going to happen now?"

"The authorities on Pendra will come and take Viper into custody and trail him. The guests will be sent home until farther notice and I—I'll be going back to Pendra to notify the families."

"Oh, Love I'm sorry. Are you going to be alright?"

"I've got to. Besides, I've spent years being an officer and I feel like this is where I belong. Out here, among the stars."

"Yeah. I know what you mean."

"Did you know, when I first started out I was a healer? I was sent out on a planet and my mission was to go out into that world and heal all the sick and injured I could find. I touched all the dying and saved them."

"Why'd you stop? You sound like you got so much in common with the Doctor."

"Pendra stopped sending out healers. Too many of us went missing. The worlds we were sent to help would get greedy and take us as captives, but I loved it. I never got over the adventure, the excitement. I've lived on Pendra for over 400 years, but I've never felt more alive since that day when I first left."

"The same thing happened for me when I met the Doctor. I used to live the same old life, with beans and toast, but he showed me that the world is such an amazing place. And now, he's kissed me. He loves me and—I—I don't know what to think."

"Well, do you love him?"

"What?"

"Do you love him?"

"He's alien."

Love sighed and turned about to face Rose and locked her gaze with her emerald eyes. Rose knew she was dodging the question, but she needed time to think.

"Does it bother you that he's an alien?"

"No."

"Did you like his kiss?"

Rose blushed. The kiss had been so tender and the hold they had on each other was so sure. She didn't want it to end. It felt so perfect. He said he loved her—that she was precious. It was like a dream, a dream she realized she didn't want to end. In fact, she wanted more. It surprised her how much she wanted more.

She knew about his dark moods and his manic joy. She knew about his passions and how dangerous he could be, but she also never felt safer in her life then when she was with him. She never doubted him.

Yet, she was afraid.

"Love, I'm scared."

"You're afraid of him?"

"No! I—I don't know what I'm afraid of."

"You liked the kiss?"

"Yes."

"Would you like him to kiss you again?"

"Yeah. I have no problem with the kissing. And before you go on questioning me, I don't know why I feel scared. I just do."

"…I understand. You care about him a lot. It scares you how much. If you say the words, it makes it real. It brings that person closer to your heart. You risk getting more hurt the closer someone is to you."

"Yeah."

"Rose, it's ok to be afraid."

Rose felt completely embarrassed. Love was so mature but then again she was really old and the things she said did make sense. She never expected the Doctor to love her—not like this. They flirted and teased and were good mates, but no matter her feelings she never thought he would feel the same way. She suddenly realized she was denying it, but now it dawned on her. She was happy. She was truly happy. He made her happy.

Rose smiled brightly at the Captain.

"I love him."

Then, abruptly Rose collapsed onto the floor. Love dashed from her seat and ran to Rose's side. She straightened her out and took in her face. She looked pale and her body unexpectedly began to jerk. The Captain tried to restrain her from hurting herself and checked for her pulse but found it was fading. She feared the worst. It was so sudden. She didn't know what was wrong.

"DOCTOR! HELP!"

* * *

Engineering:

(10) "Something's not right."

The brown-haired man turned away from his pervious incarnation and pulled at his ear anxiously. He looked lost in thought and began to mutter to himself.

"This isn't how I remembered it--it's all wrong. I was never here and Rose was never here, but why here? This was never meant to be. It's impossible. Though, there was a lot of turbulence getting here. Maybe I'm not supposed to be here? But, the words! I never said the words. I'd remember that. There's got—"

(9) "Would you knock it off. What's your problem?"

"_DOCTOR! HELP!"_

(10) "Never mind that, that was Love!"

The two Doctors raced down the corridors until they found the Captain kneeling over a very pale and still Rose. Instantly, the Doctors sprang into action. The ninth Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and began to franticly scan Rose to determine her illness while the tenth Doctor ushered Love to the side and started questioning her about what had happened.

"I don't know what happened! One minute we were talking and the next she collapsed. She began to seize and her pulse is weak. I don't know what caused it. Please, let me touch her."

(9) "No, it may have been your doing that caused this."

The leather-clad man gathered Rose in his arms and took her to the TARDIS leaving Love and Ten to trail behind.

* * *

The ninth Doctor stormed inside his beloved ship and marched Rose to the med.-bay and began to work on her lifeless form. The tenth Doctor soon joined him in trying to save Rose's life. While, Love entered quietly and stood against the wall and waited.

(10) "She's fading. Her heart's not working."

(9) "Prepare the machine and give her a shock. Come on, Rose you can't give up."

(10) "It isn't working! There's too much poison in her system."

(9) "There's an abnormal growth in her chest cavity. It's concentrating the poison. I can't filter it out. We got to get that thing outside of her. Get her prepped for an operation."

(10) "It's too late!"

(9) "NO! I WON'T LET ROSE TYLER DIE!"

(10) "She's gone!"

(9) "No!"

(10) "Doctor. Doctor, she's gone."

The ninth Doctor stood stock still and all emotion drained from his face. He knew the other man was right. They came too late. He felt his world come crashing down on him. Rose Tyler was gone—his precious Rose. He just told her a few hours ago that he wouldn't let her die—that he loved her. He wanted to tell her he'd love her forever. He wanted to say he'd love her for all time, for always. He wanted to tell her everything, show her everything worth showing, but now it would never be.

He felt numb. He felt like all the feeling he would ever have in this world had died today along with Rose Tyler. He was now alone.

* * *

The wild-haired man clutched Captain Love by her arms and shook her from her daze. He shouted at her, "Love, what exactly happened? He said you might have caused this. What did you do?"

"When Viper shot Rose she was dying. I was trying to save her."

"What did you do?"

"I gave her some of my blood."

The tenth Doctor released Love and started to pace. Giving some Pendra blood to a human shouldn't cause this kind of reaction. Pendra DNA was highly adaptable and could have easily healed Rose from a gunshot wound. Where had the poison come from? Oh! Pendra were known to be highly toxic too.

Rassilion! Suddenly it all made sense. When the Captain went to save Rose by healing her with her blood, she had accidentally poisoned her at the same time. The blood transfusion was a quick fix. It solved all of Rose's injuries, but it had grown too toxic for her system to handle because of the strange growth. The strange growth was acting like a sponge and kept it in her system.

"I didn't know. I tried to warn him. I used the most potent blood from my second heart."

"What!"

The dark-eyed man gave Love a deadly stare. He backed her up against a nearby table and concerned her with his rage.

"Blood from your own heart! The toxicity levels from that part of your system would have felled an elephant! She was only human. Your own damn people only use hearts-blood to cure themselves."

"Doctor, I know you grieve her, but I'm not her murder. I was trying to save her."

Then, quietly they heard the ninth Doctor speak. He said, "Don't blame Love. I told her to do it. It was me. I'm to blame…"

The Captain walked to the leather-clad man's side and shouted, "No, that's not true. You didn't know Viper would shoot Rose or that my blood would kill her."

(9) "Yeah, but I'm the one who brought her here. This isn't even the place I planned on taking her either. She wanted sweets and I was taking her to Varia. I got it all wrong and now Rose is dead. All because of me."

Then, all of a sudden, Rose sat up from her place on the medical table like a zombie. The unexpected surprise scared the crap out of all three aliens in the room.

The ninth Doctor ran to Rose and hugged her tightly in his arms. He pressed his face into her golden hair and breathed in her wonderful scent.

(9) "Rose Tyler, you're alive!"


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

After enduring multipliable examinations and tests, Rose was finally allowed to leave the med.-bay. The first thing she wanted to do was take a shower and the second was getting a cup of tea. She didn't have any problem getting freshened up, but when she emerged from her room she found she was being followed.

It seemed her second never death experience of the day was the last straw for her Doctor and he made it his business to keep her in his sights from here on out. It was rather annoying being looked after like a tropical houseplant, but the up side was she didn't have to lift a finger to getting her tea. The Doctor was waiting on her hand and foot and presented her with her favorite blend without any fuss.

It wasn't long before their other two guests made their way into the galley. They all settled themselves with a mug and a seat. The atmosphere was serious and heavy like a London fog.

Rose: "I feel fine. Why is everyone being so depressed? I'm not dead. Isn't that good?"

The leather-clad man grabbed Rose's hand and linked his fingers with her own. He gave her a comforting smile before he spoke.

(9) "Rose, it's beyond fantastic that you're a live. No one is down about that. It's just that—according to the tests you aren't the same like you were before."

Rose: "What'd mean?"

(9) "You've got two hearts."

Rose: "What? You mean I just grew one? How'd it happen?"

(10) "When you got shot by Viper and Love here saved you, she gave you her blood. Specifically, hearts-blood from her second heart. It's loaded with regenerating cells. Just think of them as super stem cells that happen to grow a hundred times faster than normal. However, hearts-blood is extraordinary strong and is reserved for _only_ seriously injured Pendra patients. The blood in essences healed you like a Pendra. It grew you a second heart."

Rose: "So, Love's blood was thinking I was one of those plant people and fixed me up with an extra heart?"

Love: "Yes, in a nut shell that's what happened. Though, I have to tell you it's not an average new heart. It will function like a Pendra heart, which means when you get hurt you'll heal faster than usual and will probably live much longer than a typical human."

Rose: "How much longer?"

Love: "It's hard to tell. You don't have an expiration date stapled on you anywhere."

Rose: "Oh. Well, how long does an average Pendra live?"

Love: "It depends on lifestyle and family house, but the usual life time is about 800 to a 1,000 years."

Rose: "What! I'm going to live a 1,000 years?"

(9) "Love, you said it depended on lifestyle and family, what about your family?"

Love nervously looked away and twisted her hair. She didn't like talking about her family, but knew it was best to spill.

Love: "…My family is of a high house. I'm already 600, but I'm expected to live beyond a 1,000 years."

Rose: "How much longer?"

Love: "Maybe an extra 400."

Rose: "1,400 years! I'll be ancient."

Love: "I don't think you'll end up living as long as me. You aren't a Pendra. You only have implanted DNA. I estimate the latter of the usual guess and say you've got about 800 years."

Rose pressed her lips tight and thought about what was just said. It had certainty been an interesting day. A run for sweets lands her dead twice and set with a pair of double hearts. Granted, any day that left you alive was a good day, but now she got to live way longer than normal and get recovery to boot. Having new healing powers would really come in handy when traveling with the Doctor. He didn't have to worry so much about her and she could stay with him that much longer. It wasn't like she went looking for trouble, trouble always seemed to find her.

(9) "Rose?"

Rose smiled at her Doctor and said, "I think it's great. Having super healing power is fantastic. Who wouldn't want to get over nicks and scraps a whole lot faster? And besides, it makes me more like you."

(9) "Rose, I know it may not seem like such a big deal right now, but when you get older and living longer than the average human, you'll start being different than everyone else. It might bother you when you start seeing things pasting by and you'll seem like you're standing still."

She looked pensive at what the Doctor said. It touched her to know he cared. She knew he had a habit of blaming himself. He was always trying to shoulder all the responsibility. She turned about and hugged him in her seat and laid her head against his shoulder.

Rose: "It won't matter cause I got you."

She leaned in closer to his ear and whispered, "I love you."

* * *

Oh, the universe was just not fair, thought the tenth Doctor as he bitterly drank his tea. This whole universe was topsey-turvy. Apparently, in this world old-big-ears gets the girl and live happily for a much longer forever than he ever hoped. He knew it was petty to be jealous of your own self, but he couldn't help pouting—a little—Time Lords do not pout. However, he had to admit that at least he was deserving of Rose Tyler. He was gutsy enough to say the words and that ranked pretty high in his book.

He turned his gaze over to the eerie-eyed Captain and wondered why he didn't have a Love in his time with Rose. He wondered if things would have been just as brilliant if she gave her hearts-blood to his Rose. Would they too be passionately in each other's arms? Would they have what looked like the perfect ending?

Somehow he doubted it. Too many things in this world were off and Rose was beyond his reach. His Rose was beyond the walls in Pete's world. He hadn't a clue whose world this was. Maybe he ought to call it Love's world?

Love: "Doctors, Rose? It's about time I leave."

Rose: "Oh, Love I'm going to miss you."

Rose moved across the galley and gave the Captain a hug good-bye. She said, "Thank you for saving me."

Love: "All in a days work for the head of security, Ms. Tyler. Though, honestly I much rather be called Tem."

Rose: "I wish you could go back to being a healer so you could go back to traveling."

Love: "I might try and look into it."

(9) "Yeah, who wouldn't want to be healed by the power of Love."

Rose: "Doctor! That's so corny."

In response the ninth Doctor grinned madly at Rose and took her hand.

(9) "So, we'll walk you out?"

(10) "No need. I should be heading out too. I'll show Love out."

The tenth Doctor walked up to the leather-clad man and gave him a friendly hug. He kind of missed being him sometimes. He sort of missed how things used to be between this him and Rose. The chemistry was so different.

(10) "See you later."

(9) "Hopefully not anytime soon. And thank you, Captain."

The wild-haired man went to say his farewells to Rose, but she gave him a curious look.

(10) "What on your mind Tyler?"

Rose blushed and coyly ran her tongue across her teeth. She anxiously pointed to her head and then to his and asked, "Can I?"

The tenth Doctor looked up. He didn't see anything. He wrinkled his brow in confusion. What was she on about?

Rose giggled and said, "Just bend down a little. I can't reach." Rose took her hand and ran it into the tenth Doctor's wild hair.

He was shocked. Rose bloody Tyler just had to play with his hair! She used her fine fingers and combed through his wild puff back and forth in a hypnotic rhythm that had him soon closing his eyes. Rassilion, it felt surprisingly good. His Rose never touched his hair like that. He then began to purr deep inside his throat at her tender touch.

Rose: "God, you're like a cat. A cat with really, really great hair."

(9) "Rose take your mitts off that pretty-boy, now!"

Rose stopped her petting and skipped up to her Doctor's side and re-linked their hands. With a playful smile she said, "It's ok, Doctor. I'll be sure to play with you next. We could do some dancing."

(9) "Oh, we will do some dancing, Ms. Tyler. But, I'm sure Ten here wants to get underway."

The wild-hair man was feeling uncomfortable watching his old-self flirting with Rose. It seemed extremely wrong. He knew too much when it came to their meaning on "dancing."

(10) "Yup, TARDIS needs tinkering. I better go. Captain?"

Love: "May the stars be with you."

* * *

The tenth Doctor and Captain Tempest Love watched as the ninth Doctor's TARDIS dematerialize into the Vortex. The strange song of the cosmos bellowed out into the silent station and then into thin air. The Captain faced the Doctor and linked her arm through his.

"Come on, let me walk you home."

"Why, Love that would be brilliant. And somewhat surprising, you're not acting very much like an officer. Have you fallen for my charms? You wouldn't be the first."

"Don't flatter yourself. Besides, I'm allowed to break protocol every now and then. It's not like anyone is here to see."

"That is true. Though, I hear you would rather be a healer than a captain. Why not break protocol all the way and come with me?"

"I can't."

"But, you—I thought you wanted to leave."

"I do want to leave, but I want to go out on my own. And I can't leave my duties undone. I have families to notify."

"Yeah, sorry. Still, you would have made a lovely Captain to the TARDIS."

"Under different circumstances I would have gone. You know they say on Pendra that a great healer also has the making of a great warrior."

"Yeah, quit. Well, here we are, home sweet TARDIS. Thank you, Tem."

Suddenly, Love hugged the Doctor and at the last minute patted his hair with a laugh.

"You know, she was right, you do have great hair."

"Oi, that was sneaky!"

"Doctor, I don't know much about you, but I know you aren't like any Time Lord I ever heard of. And I've lived long enough to know you're sweet on Rose. Whatever has happened, if you could fix it, I want you to try. I know you think you should have your mind on bigger things, like time or space, but you've got to live for what gives you joy."

"It's not that simple."

"Doctor, trust me, it is, it just never seems that way when your in the thick of it. May the stars be with you."

* * *

The Doctor shook his head and smiled to himself after Love left. It was a nice thought to simply go after what you want. Love really had a fighting spirit about her. However, he still had the dilemma of being in the wrong universe.

The Doctor fished through his pockets until he got hold of his TARDIS key. He put the key in the lock, but noticed that the door was open. He was sure he locked it when he got out. Had Nine come and pointed around when he wasn't looking? Had Rose?

It was awfully rude to be the victim of snooping. The Doctor threw the door open peeved that the leather-clad man had the gall to be so nosy. The man had no respect for his elders.

When he marched up to controls to begin dematerialized he heard a bizarre giggling.

"!"

"Who's there? How did you get in?"

"Hehehe! Oh, Dark Lord that dwells in time. How good of you to come this time."

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"I am the one that seeks the lonely places. I am the one that has been touched by the goddess of time. She has stars and suns in her eyes."

"What?"

"I am the one called Cann. I seek the Time Lord. Wooowooo!"

"Well, Cann you found me. What do you want?"

"To sing a song, but the drums beat too strong. They pound away thump, thump, thump…madness. They try and master me!"

"Alright…hum, Cann, where are you?"

"Over here, Doc-tor!"

The Doctor moved around the central control until he saw it. There—laid in a broken shell was an exposed Dalek.

"No! This can't be happening! How'd you get in here? How'd you find me?"

The strange pink and wriggling creature blink it's yellowed eye and slowly wheeled it's way closer to the Doctor. The wild-hair man shrunk back in fear. He didn't know how long the Dalek had been inside the TARDIS. He had no idea what it had planned. And it certainly didn't act like the usual Dalek either. It was odd and it seemed mad.

"Hehehhe, I flew into the wild and the Bad Wolf howled for her lonely angel."

"You're saying Bad Wolf sent you. Why?"


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"_You're saying Bad Wolf sent you. Why?"_

Crazy Cann let out another giggle, "Hehehheheheheehehe!"

The Doctor found his patience wearing thin. He never met a mad Dalek before—wait! No! He had. He met Cann before. He met him back when he last seen Rose. Back when the stars were going out and Davros had died and Donna had to forget. How could he forget? Something wasn't right.

The Doctor turned to Cann and snapped his fingers to grab his attention. He shouted, "Cann, focus! You said Bad Wolf sent you, but for some reason my memory has been distorted and I didn't remember you. Yet, now I do. Why?"

"The goddess stretches out her hand and pulled you across walls. She wants you. She wants you near. Hehehe!"

"She pulled me across walls? She pulled the TARDIS across dimensions? Well, that sort of explains a lot. I just recently met a Rose Tyler from my past incarnation that will definitely live longer than my Rose ever will. But, the anemia—Oh, I have it! Temporal time wave and the turbulence! It was caused by universe hopping and wasn't entirely Viper's fault. I must have suffered some slight memory loss during the anomaly. Still, that doesn't explain you. What do you want?"

"The Lords of Time are hunting! They seek the Bad Wolf. They want her Doc-tor! Hehehehahahahaha!"

"…Lords of Time…Time Lords? But, that's impossible, all the Time Lords are dead. That doesn't make any sense."

Suddenly, Cann began to roll. He wheeled up to the Doctor and whispered, "Oh Hohoho, Doc-tor, you must return to her…"

Cann seemed satisfied that his message was delivered, or delivered as clearly as a crazed Dalek could make. He then backed away and gradually began to vibrate. He was beginning to make a temporal jump, but at the last minute he spoke.

"Good-bye, Doc-tor! Hehehehehe! May the stars be with you!"

And instantly, Cann was gone.

* * *

The Doctor was baffled by the message he heard. Both by the meaning and the choice of messenger vexed him to no end. He thought Bad Wolf was behind him and Time Lords were gone. It seemed bizarre. The Doctor paced the control and rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh. Really? What was he supposed to do? He couldn't just hop on over to Pete's world like taking the bus. The walls were closed—or supposed to be closed since obvious he wasn't in his original universe anymore. This was Love's world and he didn't do the driving, Bad Wolf did. Even if he tried to hop out, he couldn't—at least not alone. He needed at least one other Time Lord to do that.

Then the Doctor stopped dead in his tracks.

"Yes! Of course! Another Time Lord! Rassilion, how thick was I? I just have to shimmy over to Love's world's Doctor and give old number Nine a ring."

* * *

The Ninth Doctor's TARDIS:

Once inside the Vortex, the leather-clad man grabbed one of Rose's hands and swung her around from the controls and pinned her back against the railing. He hugged her close and used his free hand to play along her spine.

"Well, Rose Tyler, shall I show you my moves?"

"Yeah, but first, can you say it again?"

The Doctor smiled brightly and pretended not to know what she meant. Instead, he lowered his head and gave Rose a quick playful kiss.

"What words do you mean?"

Rose gently pressed her forehead to his and said in a sensual voice, "You know exactly what I mean. Say it, and I promise to be very, very good."

"Really? I was hoping you'd be very, very bad. Naughty even."

"Doctor!"

The Doctor laughed and tiled his head to the side and lightly planted kisses along Rose's neck and quietly whispered, "I love you" against her skin. The words sent a shiver down her spine and she closed her eyes.

"I love you too."

When the words left her lips, it sent the Doctor's hearts racing.

He knew for certain he would never tire of hearing Rose Tyler say the words. He felt like the luckiest man in the universe. Rose Tyler loved him. He couldn't express to her how wonderful she made him feel. He felt more alive than he ever felt before.

Then, with a fiery passion, the leather-clad man captured Rose's lips in possessive kiss. He ran his hand into her beautiful hair and the other on the small of her back. He then sucked her bottom lip and licked the crease of her mouth with his tongue till at last she parted them and allowed him to taste her lush fragile substance.

Ring! Ring!

The sound of the TARDIS phone startled them from their kiss.

"That better not be your Mum!"

Ring! Ring!

"I don't think so. Mum usually calls me up on my cell."

"Then, who the bloody hell could that be?"

"Doctor?"

"Sorry, just—we were busy. And—"

Ring! Ring!

"Rassilion! Fine!"

The Doctor walked around the controls to get the phone and picked it up. He put the receiver to his ear and said in an all too cheery voice, "Hello. You've reached Henrick's department store, how may I help you?"

Rose giggled at the Doctor's phony answer to the call and followed him at the controls. She then stood behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist in a bear hug. The Doctor stole a glance at her over his shoulder, but continued to listen to the phone.

(10) "…Doctor?"

(9) "What? It's you! What do you want?"

Rose: "Who is it?"

(9) "It's me."

Rose: "What?"

(9) "It's me—pretty-boy me."

Rose: "Oh. What's he want?"

(9) "That's what I'm trying to ask. Now, pretty-boy, what do you want?"

(10) "Oh, well it isn't really fair to call me _pretty_ is it? It's awfully rude. I thought you were going to call me Ten. Besides, I rather think of myself as handsomely brainy or usually dashing. Though, I have been called brown, but that is hardly descriptive. It's so blah and not very exciting an—"

(9) "Shut up! Alright, Ten, what do you want?"

(10) "Ah, yes. Well, I appear to be lost."

(9) "…Has your head gone soft?"

(10) "No, I mean I've lost my dimension. It turns out that temporal wave was more than just Viper. It was a temporal rift caused by a temporal entity. I was literally thrown out from my original universe and ended up here. If I could get another TARDIS to help initiate another temporal rift than I will be able to return, but I need—I need your help getting back."

(9) "Let me get this straight. You want me to put my TARDIS at risk so you can poke a hole in the fabric of reality so you can get back home?"

(10) "Yes! Exactly!"

(9) "I was right, you are a loon."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

He just couldn't catch a break. Here he was, having a lovely time with Rose and he had to get interrupted, but the big kicker wasn't that it had happened, it was who happened. He was the one who interrupted himself. Ten had the perfect timing. Back at the station, he just knew pretty-boy was going to be a problem. Though, he had to admit he wasn't the sort of problem he excepted. Most times when a pretty-boy shows up they get too friendly with Rose and come already mixed up in something bad, but now he was learning he was the worst pretty-boy of them all. Turns out _he_ was the one who loses Rose _and_ wants to end reality.

Meanwhile, still on the TARDIS phone, Ten said, "Oi! You know your only name calling yourself. Don't you have any respect for your elders?"

(9) "I got no respect for Time Lords who get themselves lost in other dimensions. Besides, what you're suggesting is madness and not your average brand of madness mind you, but can-end-all-of-the-universe madness."

(10) "But it's vital that I get back. It involves the whole of time and space!"

(9) "How do you even know you're from another dimension? Your TARDIS seems to be working fine if you can call me up and annoy me. A TARDIS can't function in another dimension, the energy isn't the same."

(10) "Ah! Well, brilliant me had a run in with other dimensions before and I came up with a solution to that problem ages ago. And I know for a fact that this isn't my dimension cause my Rose was never on Pendra. Plus, it was confirmed to me by a somewhat reliable source."

(9) "…Alright."

(10) "Excess me?"

(9) "I said alright. I'll help you get back."

(10) "Brilliant! I knew I could count on you, so where should we meet?"

(9) "Planet Varia, year Colome, first day of spring at _Rebel Rest_, bed & breakfast, 9 o'clock."

(10) "Right-o, see you soon Doctor."

The leather-clad man sighed and hanged up the phone. He didn't look forward into regenerating into him, even if he wasn't technically him to begin with. Ten was from another dimension, another time line, but in the back of his mind he knew this man was just like him and besides, he had a Rose Tyler too. How different could the man be?

* * *

When Rose stepped out from the TARDIS she found herself surrounded by thousands of colorful roses. The air was sweet and clean and wonderfully fresh. The sky was a wonderful shade of orange gold and bright yellows that she found herself marveling in its splendor.

She laughed out loud and pulled the Doctor into her embrace.

"Oh, it's gorgeous! I love it!"

"Well, Rose I finally got us to Varia and that bed & breakfast."

"Yea! The sweets planet."

"Yeah. You can have all the sweets you want. My treat."

"Really? Like a date? I've always fancied going on a date with you."

"Rose Tyler, are you asking me out?"

Rose smiled and tried putting on a northern accent and said, "Yeah. Is that alright?"

The Doctor laughed and said, "Yeah. Fantastic."

He then broke from Rose's hug and took her hand. The Doctor led her up a twisted path till they found themselves in front of a large house. The house was made of brick and stone and had paint fading off from age, but overall the building was well maintained and looked very cozy. At the top of the door was a sign that read, _Rebel Rest_, bed & breakfast, comrades are served for free.

"So, Doctor, are you a comrade?"

"Of course Rose, helped out the year Warden at the fourth war. The resistance finally won against their creators. It was epic."

Rose in response giggled and said, "Right, I knew it. You're always a cheap date."

"Oi! I'm not cheap. This place is pretty pricey. You're lucky I am one or we'd never get in. Come on then, let's make reservations."

* * *

The inside _Rebel Rest_ was decorated in all sorts of alien antiques and oddities that it looked like it would fit right at home on the TARDIS. The Doctor took in the sights with glee and pointed out various objects that he knew might spark Rose's delight like the automatic chipmaker. A hostess approached them and was about to be seated among the other patrons, till the Doctor declared his status as a comrade. Immediately, the hostess took them away to a back garden to be seated at a private patio. The space was beautifully laid out with simple lawn furniture and white table clothes. It was very secluded and tucked away by tall fragrant rose brushes. It looked awfully romantic.

The leather-clad man beamed. It was wonderful—perfect for a date and if his Rose wanted a date he was all too willing to please.

However, they found out they weren't alone. Ten was already there and waved at them to sit at his table.

(10) "Ah, right on time, 9 o'clock on the dot. Isn't this place cozy? I nearly forgot all about it."

(9) "So much for our date. So, let get down to business."

(10) "What?"

Rose: "Doctor, business is second, first thing I want is cake!"

* * *

As it turned out, the two Doctors did jump right into talking about "business" while Rose dug into her tasty piece of chocolate cake. Nine was still disappointed in not having some time alone with Rose. He felt so excited about their new relationship he didn't know if he could contain himself. He was so relieved in telling her how he felt. He felt like he wanted to tell her everything.

Nine noticed that Ten had finally stopped babbling on about temporal rifts and alternate worlds and was now eating his order of banana cream pie. It was terribly annoying having to hear about temporal rifts like he was some human, but he realized he was likely doing it for Rose's benefit.

It bothered him that Ten was still putting his own Rose at arm's length. She obviously cared about him to become Bad Wolf, but really—if it were he, and his Rose was locked away in other world, there was no force between heaven and earth that would keep him away.

Nine turned towards Rose and caught her licking the last morsel of cake off her fork and he closed his eyes with a groan. He was positive that Rose in any universe would be the death of him. Unfortunately, he didn't realize that she heard him and she leaned over to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. He opened his eyes and gave her a warm smile. He knew he wouldn't want it any other way.

Ten fidgeted uncomfortably in front of the pair and cleared his throat to grab their attention, "So, as I said before, I was informed that Bad Wolf is looking for me and is the cause of my current situation being here. All I really need is a tag or a homing-beacon in order to track her down."

Rose: "Has she still got her super-phone? Can't you track her with that?"

(10) "Oh! That might work. If she still got it with her than that would work brilliantly."

Rose: "Trust me. If I were looking for you, I'd still have it with me."

Ten smiled at Rose and said, "Yeah, a Rose who isn't my Rose. I bet I could ask you tons of things I wouldn't normally ask her directly. So, Ms. Tyler, are you mad about my hair? Have you always had an itch to touch it?"

The ninth Doctor gave Ten a glare, but Rose playfully slapped his arm and said, "Oh, you are such a flirt! Quit winding him up."

(9) "Enough of that. Come on, let's get pretty-boy back home."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Rose saw the Doctor swirl around the TARDIS at a break neck speed and fiddling with the console's knobs and twitches. It was like a strange dance. It was all an effort to get the other Doctor home. That other Doctor, the brown one, Ten had a nice lightheartedness about him that made him boyishly charming. He even looked younger than her Doctor did. He babbled—tasted and hopped, while her Doctor didn't.

Yet, she realized he did something her Doctor was never really good at and that was hiding how he really felt. No matter how well, her stormy-eye alien smiled she knew when he was or wasn't being sincere. She knew when it was all a charade to throw off the villain or when it was done spontaneously in wondrous surprise at something she said or done. And above all else she knew he was a man of his word, someone she could trust, someone who would always hold her hand.

God, she didn't even know what he even saw in her to begin with. She wasn't someone important. She wasn't "historical" or terribly bright or even that beautiful. She was just Rose Tyler; ex-shop girl turned time traveler. Was she really the best?

Unexpectedly, she asked, "Doctor, what's it about me you love?"

The Doctor stopped mid-spin to reach a button and gave Rose a confused look. He wrinkled his brow with a confused frown and said, "What's not to love? And besides, is this really the time? I got to recalibrate the TARDIS to create a stable temporal rift between realities and hone it in on a specific signal. I know it shouldn't be so hard for a genius like me, but it does require a bit of concentration."

"But, I'm just a human. Just Rose Tyler."

The Doctor sighed. He really didn't know how she could think such things. He'll never understand women even if he lived out all thirteen of his regenerations they'd still be a mystery to him.

"Rose, technically you aren't just human, at least not anymore. Love—I mean _Captain_ Love, changed you. And even before all that, it didn't matter, I still felt the same."

"But—"

"No. Rose, you shouldn't doubt. I'm not going to change my mind."

Then, suddenly the Doctor panicked and said, "Wait! Are you changing your mind?"

"No!"

"So, why are you being so self-conscious?"

Frustrated, Rose shouted, "Cause I'm just an ape! And you're this—this great big Time Lord. The other Doctor said all those things that his Rose did. How she became Bad Wolf. How she defends the Earth. How she crossed worlds just to be with him. I haven't done any of that! What if we aren't the same?"

"It doesn't matter! You're my Rose, not his! You don't have to do those things for me. Rassilion, I hope you never do, so don't you dare feel inferior Rose Tyler. I don't need you to prove yourself to me, to feel worthy of loving me. If anyone should feel like they need to prove themselves, it should be me. Oh, Rose, I've done so many terrible things and if I told you the things I've done, you'd probably run back home to your Mum. But—Rassilion help me, I so want to tell you. I want to tell you everything. Cause if there is anyone in this universe who could forgive me, it would be you—I can't forgive myself."

Rose ran over to the Doctor and gave him a tight hug. She tilted her head at the cook of his neck and said softly, "Doctor, it's ok. I-I can't judge you. Not for all the things you've done. I can't. All I know is you and what you do now and—and it's fantastic!"

The Doctor laughed. He pulled back from their embrace and gave her a quick kiss and then lifted her up and spun her around as she squealed with glee. Rose just seemed to know exactly what to say. She was right. He was fantastic and she was too cause deep down he knew it wasn't fair to ask her. In fact, no Time Lord could ever measure up to the things he'd done let alone a human—let alone he's own girl.

(10) "Oi! Are you people getting any work done? Come on! Chop-chop! The old girl can't do it alone."

Nine groaned and said, "Alright! Hold your horses! Activating temporal rift, now."

At last, the leather-clad man reached over and pushed the final button on the console.

A beam of energy was pulsed out into space and opened up a rip in time and space. The rift glowed in vibrant golden waves and quickly it began to draw the Tenth Doctor's TARDIS within. The moment the TARDIS past the threshold of the temporal rift it was sealed away into the nothingness of space.

The Tenth Doctor's TARDIS flew madly in the temporal rift in a blinding speed as it cut through the dimensions and honed in on its target. All the while, inside the Doctor ran about trying to maintain a stable flight path into the unknown. Then, ultimately he came to an abrupt stop. With a loud thump the TARDIS seemed dead, black and dark.

* * *

Overall, as far as trans-dimensional travel goes that wasn't such a bad ride. The TARDIS was unharmed, just drained. A little time to refuel was all she needed. Her counter-part back in Love's world seemed to be in really good shape to pull off a temporal rift, but then again no matter what universe he was in, the Doctor was unquestionably brilliant.

He ran his fingers through his hair and brushed off his coat then pushed open the TARDIS doors. He stepped out and took a look around. He was in London.

Mentally, he decided to go over his checklist, first, cross over to another dimension—check. No sweat there, not when you've got a double of good old number Nine. Second, locate Rose Tyler. Well, that shouldn't be so hard, after all, Rose in Pete's world was a rich man's daughter and the leader of Torchwood. However, he noticed that something wasn't right. He stopped dead in his tracks and looked up in the sky and realized he hadn't seen a single zeppelin hover by.

He wasn't in Pete's world; he was really back, back in his original dimension.

He didn't need to check. He just knew. He felt it in the spin of the world, in the taste of the time. He was really back, back where it had all begun. It didn't make sense why the TARDIS brought him here. He was looking for Rose, _his_ Rose. The only way that this could make sense is that she really was here and had somehow crossed worlds again.

The Doctor looked about for any trace of her while he rubbed the back of his head. Rose Tyler was making a habit of jumping worlds. She really had a knack for it. _And_ on top of it, she was doing it with a TARDIS.

Suddenly, while lost in thought, the Doctor bumped into a woman on the street.

"Oh, sorry about that."

"No, no problem, really it's ok."

The Doctor gazed at the woman in front of him and nearly jumped out of his skin. He took hold of her arms and smiled with the power a million suns.

"Rose!"

* * *

She looked exactly as he remembered her. She had radiant blond hair, big bright chocolate eyes, that clever smile and that trendy purple leather jacket. He could drink her in she was so perfect. And here she was, standing before him.

"…Oh, Rose."

"Doctor? Is it really you?"

The Doctor hugged Rose and felt himself melting in her embrace and swung her from side to side. Rassilion! He missed her. Being with alternate Nine and Not-Rose was driving him insane. Their lovey-dovey world of confessions and tender kisses were eating him up inside with unbelievable feelings of jealousy and regret.

When he was in Love's world and listened unknowingly on the con to Nine talking to his Rose he knew what he meant when he said he felt unworthy. Rose didn't deserve the Bringer of Death or an ageless Time Lord. She deserved forever. She deserved someone who wasn't a coward. She deserved someone who'd say the words—and there was someone that did say the words.

"Rose, why are you here? Where's the other Doctor?"

"He isn't here. I-I can back by myself."

"What?! Why? Why'd you do that? Crossing worlds could risk entire universes. You know that Rose! You can't go punching holes in the fabric of reality just to pop by for a hello. It could end the world, both here and Pete's world. Rassilion! Rose, you had me—human-me, you could have all the things I could never have, a human life with a mostly human me. What more could you possibly want?"

Rose gave the Doctor a glare that would put the look of the On Coming Storm to shame. She was boiling under the surface with rage and the Doctor suddenly feared he just earned himself a Tyler-slap.

Rose stepped away from the Doctor and in a scary calm voice she said, "You've got some nerve shouting at me! You think I came all this way just for a chat? How thick do you think I am? I came here cause I need your help."

"But what about the other Doctor? What about Torchwood?"

Rose sighed and leaned against a wall.

"It's a long story, but I can't go back, not yet. I couldn't lead the Time Lords back to Pete's world."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

The Doctor couldn't believe his ears. Rose Tyler was back in her original universe and couldn't go back to Pete's world because of Time Lords hunting her, why? It didn't make any sense. Time Lords were all gone.

"What Time Lords?"

"I met them when I was traveling between dimensions looking for you."

The Doctor rubbed the back of his head and said, "Explain. From the top, what happened?"

"Well—wait. Are you sure you want to be talking about this out here? Don't you think we should go to the TARDIS? Have a cup?"

"What? Oh, right. Not the type of conversation you want to be having in the street. Well, come along."

The Doctor unconsciously took Rose's hand and began leading her back to the time-ship. Rose couldn't help smiling the whole way at the familiar gesture. No matter what happened, she really did miss him.

* * *

When Rose saw the TARDIS she immediately began to hear the ship's eerie song chant in the air. It had felt like forever since the last time she saw her and she could already sense the ancient ship's joy. The Doctor was surprised to hear the glee in the old girl's song, but guessed he underestimated how much she must have missed Rose. However, once inside, the TARDIS positively beamed with happiness at Rose's return. Rose practically ran across the control room to gently caress the time-ship's coral-like structures and the ship positively purred.

The Doctor had never seem his ship behave like this in his entire life. He could literally feel her joy seep into his mind.

"Rose, what happened?"

Rose turned to face the Doctor and replied, "I became Bad Wolf."

"How? There are no TARDIS in Pete's world. How did you come in contact with the Vortex? How did you remove the energy? Why aren't you burning alive?"

"Wait! Hang on. Bad Wolf isn't how it all started. It started back in Pete's world and the Doctor—I mean John—he was trying to send me back. He was trying to get me back here, back to you, but something happened when I crossed the wall. It was like this sound—like the TARDIS dematerializing and I heard this sound and saw all this light. And I thought something had gone wrong, that I was dying, but I wasn't, it was the Vortex. The Vortex was between the worlds and it was beautiful and it made me the Bad Wolf, and—I could see everything."

"But, that's impossible!"

"It's not! I saw it! And then I didn't end up here. I landed in some other world. Some place where the Time Lords escaped in another dimension. There's a whole city of Time Lords living there and I saw the Daleks too. They were trying to break into the city and they were losing. I knew it was only a matter of time before they got in, I knew cause I saw it, I saw it would happen, but I could let it, so I stopped them. I made them go away, but that damn idiots wanted to catch me. But I didn't want to get caught so I left, but they kept following me. The Time Lords kept following me from one world to the next over and over. I couldn't shake them and I couldn't go back. I couldn't lead them back to John and Torchwood, so I kept moving. I got so scared I had to get help, so I had Cann go and get you. I-I'm sorry."

The Doctor hugged Rose tightly and kissed the top of her head.

"No, I'm sorry Rose. You should never be hunted."

Rose gently backed away from the Doctor's embrace and sniffled back her tears and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She gazed at him with her big bright chocolate eyes and asked, "So, what now?"

The Doctor smiled and took her hand.

"First, we'll have that cup of tea, then I got to figure out if you're in any danger since you went all Bad Wolf and thirdly, I have to try and see if I can do something about those Time Lords. Really, it should be a piece of cake."

Rose giggled, "Right, piece of cake."

* * *

Underneath the Doctor's placid exterior he was done right unnerved. He wasn't sure if he really did make it back to his original dimension. Though, it was wonderful—no absolutely brilliant that Rose was back in his life, but the return of Bad Wolf was ominous. Rose had somehow regained her goddess-like powers and was now a fugitive of his once-thought-dead people. He was torn between being on one hand overjoyed and on the other utterly terrified. Overall, Rose Tyler seemed perfectly fine. She acted pretty normal given the circumstances, but still crossing worlds, creating temporal rifts, summoning Cann and eluding time wielding aliens wasn't exactly the status quo.

He quickly drowned his cup of tea and began to prepare for a complete and extensive scan of Rose's physical and mental health.

* * *

Rose swung her legs over the edge of the examination table in the med.-bay. She chewed her bottom lip as she studied the Doctor as he peered into a high-tech microscope with his brainy specs. He had given her more scans then she could keep count and it had been one of the most boring experiences of her life. It was hardly the kind of reunion she had in mind. God sake! She didn't even get a proper kiss or—or even "I miss you."

Rose blow out a breath and hopped off the table and walked to the Doctor's side.

"So what's the verdict?"

The Doctor leaned back and pulled his ear, confused and said, "Nothing. There's absolutely nothing wrong with you Rose Tyler. You are according to my brilliant scans, 100% healthy."

"Great."

"Yes, well…I was expecting some residual hueon particles at the every least. Its all a bit odd is all—tell me, Rose how well can you control your Bad Wolf powers?"

"It sort of comes and goes. I usually go all big-bad when something's wrong, but usually I just know when something's off."

"…Hum, that's very, very, very weird, isn't it?"

"Doctor?"

"Well, Rose as far as I can tell your 'big-bad' moments aren't putting you in any danger, but I haven't seen anything like it so I really can't predict how the energy of the Time Vortex will affect you in the long run. All I can say is—"

"Let me guess, you haven't got a clue."

"Nope."

Abruptly, they heard shouts echoing throughout the TARDIS.

"What was that?"

"Don't know, but I can't wait to find out. It sounds like a sound bring broadcast through the TARDIS."

"Who's doing it?

"Oh, the TARDIS. Apparently she wants my attention. Come on, Rose to the control room."

* * *

When the Doctor and Rose reached the control room they could now clearly hear the voice of the shouts ringing throughout the TARDIS and knew immediately who it was.

Rose turned her glance towards the Doctor and didn't even bother to check the view-screen and made her way to the TARDIS doors to open them. While wearing a gleeful smile she opened the lock and threw herself into the arms of the person beyond the doors.

"Oh my God! Jack! It's really you!"

"Rose! Haha! Oh, Rosie I didn't except to see you again. Did you have enough of that parallel world or did you just miss me?"

"Oh, Jack you're so full of it."

The united friends quickly fell into a fit of giggles while the Doctor looked on with amusement.

"Hello, Jack."

"Doc!"

Jack then ran up the ramp to the Doctor and gave him a hug and said, "Hey, I picked up your signal right after my team picked up a ton of temporal rift activity. I just knew it was you, but I had no idea you'd have Rose back on broad. I thought Rosie was leading the life back with your alter ego? Did you go back and sweep her off her feet?"

Rose walked up to her friend and placed a hand on his arm.

"Jack, it wasn't like that. The Doctor didn't come back to get me. I came back to get him. I found other Time Lords and they're hunting me."

"Hold on, other Time Lords? Doc, I thought you said you were the last?"

"Apparently not, Rose said she found them in another dimension. It would make sense that I couldn't feel them if they weren't in this universe."

"So, why are they hunting Rose? I got a feeling I'm missing an awful lot here, Doc."

Rose pulled on Jack's arm to lead him deeper inside the TARDIS and said, "We better have another cup of tea, its going to take sometime to get you up to speed."


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Jack sat reclined in the TARDIS kitchen with his feet up over a vacant chair while holding an empty cup of tea. It was his second cup two, but the story Rose told of being Bad Wolf combined with the Doctor's story of meeting an alternate Rose and Nine had really boggled his mind. It wasn't that it was hard to imagine—no, he'd heard way crazier tales than theirs, it was just that he had loads of questions.

"Rose, I don't get it? Why'd you leave in the first place?"

Rose felt her blood chill. Of all the questions to be asked she was dreading that one the most. She silently lowered her head and said, "It was the other Doctor's idea—John, he wanted to send me back."

The Doctor shouted, "WHAT? The man's a complete block! Why in the world would he try and send you back here? You had your whole family back in Pete's world. You had your Mum, little brother and Pete. You had wealth and a worth wild career. You even had human-metacrisis me. What was he thinking?"

"Doc, take it easy."

"Take it easy! That half-ape idiot endangered Rose and jeopardized her happiness and not to mention the whole of creation and you want me to let it go?"

Unexpectedly, Rose bolted up from her seat and shouted back at the Doctor and said, "Do you want to know why he tried to send me back? Do you want to know why? It's cause he didn't love me!"

Rose then ran out of the kitchen and left the two men standing in her wake.

* * *

The Doctor was stunned. How could it be true? Did his other-self, John—really not love Rose Tyler? Did he not love her so much that he wanted to expel her out from the very universe? The Doctor couldn't even begin to image a world in which he didn't care for Rose Tyler. He was certain he was incapable of not loving her. Rassilion, what had he done? Did he send Rose into the arms of a man who didn't really love her?

No! That wasn't right. If the man really shared his past memories and experiences then surely it was some sort of misunderstanding. Up until the moment they split paths, John was in every way the Doctor. And since he was the Doctor, he knew that he loved Rose and up to that point, so did John too. Something must of happened from that time in Norway till now. It was the only thing that made sense.

"Doc, I think you should go after her."

"Jack, do you think if I were part human, that I would fa—that I would stop caring for Rose?"

"You should really be asking Rose. Look, I don't know what happened, but I do know what you and Rose are both worried about and it's not true. Doc, you aren't the other-Doctor. It doesn't matter what he did or didn't do, it matters what you do."

"Your right, thanks Captain."

The Doctor gave Jack a bright smile and headed out the door in search of Rose.

* * *

The Doctor eventually found Rose in her old room. She was seating on her bed and hugged tightly onto a pillow. He heard her sniffle and knew she had been crying. He felt guilty for causing her pain. He never in a million years wanted to be the cause of Rose's tears, but he wanted so badly to comfort her. He wanted to hold her in his arms.

Quietly, the Doctor walked up to her and sat next to her on the bed, but didn't dare touch her. Nervously, he looked around her mainly pink colored room and thought back to the last time in he was in here. It had been a long time since he last sat up with Rose and comforted her after a bad adventure. She used to curl up to his side and tell him all about her fears and stroke his hand. It all seemed like a lifetime ago now.

Softly he called to her, "Rose? Rose, I'm sorry. I'm sorry he didn't love you."

With her back still turned away she spoke into her pillow. She said, "It's not your fault."

"But it was me who left you there. I shouldn't have done it. I should have known."

"You couldn't have known. It's not like we knew at the time. At the beginning it was wonderful. It was fantastic. We got on great, but then we met more and more new people and then soon we were spending less and less time together and before I knew it we were practically strangers. It wasn't so bad, not really. I had lots going on and so did he. I didn't think much of it till he started fancying someone at work. When I found out I thought I'd be jealous. I thought I'd be so angry—but I wasn't. I was glad. I was relieved."

"I don't understand?"

"We were still mates, yeah? He wanted me to be happy. He felt it was his personal mission in life to make sure of it. He thought if it wasn't with him, it had to be you. He reorganized the rift-cannon and started making calculations to send me back. And before I knew it, I agreed to make jumps again. I-I traveled to so many places, to so many different times, so many possibilities that becoming Bad Wolf again was actually pretty brilliant."

"But that's dangerous Rose."

"Its not like I planned it. Being Bad Wolf helped a lot. I got to find you. And even if those Time Lords don't get it I'm glad I was able to help them too."

Rose then turned around to face the Doctor and looked at him with her tear stained face. She lightly brushed the unshed tears from her eyes.

"And anyway I knew it might be a long shot, but Doctor, I want you to know you don't have to take me back. If you don't want me, I'll leave. I'll work at Jack's Torchwood and stay in this world."

At her words the Doctor felt his hearts break in two. He gathered Rose in a hug, pillow and all and said, "Oh, Rose. I could never ask you to leave."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

It felt wonderful being in the Doctor's arms. He always made me feel so safe. I didn't want it to end. I didn't think I'd see him or the TARDIS again. I didn't even think I'd be in this room again. I hardly believe it's real. I didn't want it to end.

I didn't even care that I probably looked a mess from crying my eyes out or that they might be puffy and red. I was happy. He made me happy. I missed him, but I was so afraid he'd send me away again. I was afraid that he was like John and would reject me—drift away from me. John said that he knew it would never happen. He said he knew that the proper Doctor did care for me. He said he meant it when he said he feared he might lose me over the world.

Rose knew she could count on the Doctor to save her life, but she was still uncertain if she could trust him with her heart.

"Doctor—"

Suddenly, the TADIS started to dematerialize and began hurtling violently into the Vortex. The ship was thrown about and Rose and the Doctor landed ungracefully onto the floor.

Rose's bedroom door was pushed open and Jack appeared at the entrance.

"Doc, we've got a problem!"

The Doctor disentangled himself from Rose and helped her to her feet. He shouted at Jack, "What did you do?"

"Hey! Don't look at me. I was at the galley the whole time while you two lovebirds were getting reacquainted."

The Doctor pushed passed Jack and ran to the console room and immediately began working the controls. Jack and Rose were close behind.

"Doctor, what's happening?"

"The TARDIS is being tracked. Someone has made a link to her temporal signature and is pulling her in."

Jack: "Can't we shake them?"

"I'm trying! There! I think I've got it."

The TARDIS abruptly came to a dead stop.

* * *

The lights inside the TARDIS began to dim, but the Doctor worked the console and soon everything started to stabilize. However, he wasn't pleased and anxiously gazed about the controls.

"Doc, what the hell happened?"

Slowly, Rose inched towards the Doctor and met his eyes.

Rose: "Time Lords?"

The Doctor nodded his head, "Time Lords."

Jack: "Well, what's the plan? Come on, Doc I know you've got something. These are your people, I'm sure you could cook up something to stop them from getting their hands on Rose."

"…"

"Doc?"

"I'm thinking, Rassilion! I might be brilliant, but I still need a bit of time. Ok, right—Rose, tell me, did you have any contact with the Time Lords? Did you speak with them?"

"No. I was in Bad Wolf mode. I saw that eventually the Daleks that were lurking about would get in the city so I waved my hand and got rid of them. I didn't even go near them. I was on the second moon looking at them and I just knew."

Jack: "Why were you doing on the second moon?"

"I was looking for the Doctor and some aliens on the parallel earth told me that they heard that Time Lords were living on some floating city on the planet called Nugget. I hoped on an alien ship to check it out. In that parallel world humans are friendly with lots of aliens. Earth is like Disneyland to them."

Jack: "Disneyland?"

"Yeah, some famous alien bloke got stranded on Earth in the 50s and loved it so much that he had his honeymoon there and eventually everyone else got wind of it and started doing the same thing. That Earth is even protected by the Shadow Proclamation."

Jack: "Who was this famous guy?"

"Don't know, never bothered to look it up."

Randomly, the TARDIS doors were spontaneously opened. On the other side, they saw a figure pointing an object directly into the control room. Jack quickly sprang into action and pulled out his gun and aimed it at the intruder.

Slowly, the stranger walked into the TARDIS.

The Doctor was wide-eyed in shock. He knew this person. He'd seen this person before—but it was just so unlikely that they would turn up here.

"…Love?"

* * *

Rose shouted, "What? Are you calling this woman your love? You're such a trap!"

Doctor: "What! No, it isn't—"

Jack: "You sly dog. I knew you were a flirt, but hitting on girls in other dimensions too—you have no bounds. I'm impressed."

Doctor: "Oi! Shut up, the both of you. Now, like I was saying—this woman's name is Love. Her name is Captain Tempest Love. She's a security guard from Pendra I met back in the Not-Rose world, but I don't know why she's here. Why are you here?"

The eerie green-eyed woman walked up to the Doctor and gave him a curious look. She tiled her head and took in his face, but paused at his wild brown hair. She quickly pulled off her glove and combed her hand into his fuzzy hair.

With a smile she said, "Bed-head."

Doctor: "Oi! Bed-head! I resent that. I remember you being a lot politer than this."

Love ignored the Doctor and faced Rose, but Jack intercepted her. He took hold of her hand and planted a kiss and gave the raven-haired beauty a dazzling smile.

Jack: "Hello, I'm Captain Jack Harkness, but you can call me Jack."

Love: "Pleasure, I'm Captain Tempest Love."

Jack: "Oh the pleasure is all mine, but tell me, do you live up to your name as the Love Captain?"

Rose: "Jack!"

Jack: "Just trying to be friendly."

Love: "Sorry to interrupt, but as much fun as this little chat is turning out, I really haven't come by for a social calling. And on top of that I've never met bed-head before in my life."

Doctor: "What are you talking about? We met back on the Pendra space station back when we were dealing with that crackpot, Viper. Don't you remember? You being head of security and me being me with old number Nine?"

Love: "Never happened. I'd remember a bed-head like you. Besides, I'm here for her."

Rose: "What do you want with me?"

Love: "I'm here to take you to the Time Lords."


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

The Doctor shouted, "What!" He didn't understand. Why would Love try and take Rose to the Time Lords? How was she involved? She even said she never even met him. It didn't make any sense.

Rose stated sharply, "I'm not going anywhere!"

Love: "I was just trying to be up front, but you really don't have a say in this. You're coming with me whether you like it or not."

Jack: "Wait! Hang on, just a minute here. Love, why are you taking Rose to the Time Lords? What's in it for you?"

Doctor: "Are you saying she's some kind of bounty hunter? It's a pay off?"

Jack: "Doc, that's what it looks like to me. Besides you said so yourself, she isn't a Time Lord and in the parallel universe she was a security guard. As far as career options go, that isn't such a big leap."

Love: "You know, it's kind of rude to talk about somebody when they're in the same room."

Rose: "Look who's being rude! You're trying to kidnap me!"

Love: "I was going to ask if you'd come quietly?"

All three of the TARDIS crew shouted, "NO!"

In response, Love sighed and ran up to Rose and tightly grabbed her forearm. Rose tried to fight Love off, but it was no use, she was surprisingly stronger than she looked. The Doctor saw Rose's failed attempt to get loose and decided to prevent the rouge hunter from leaving and pointed his sonic screwdriver to the TARDIS doors to close them shut. Meanwhile, Jack leveled his gun at the hunter.

Jack: "Ok sweetheart, you've got nowhere to go, so let her go."

Love gave the Captain a wink and replied, "Sorry, handsome maybe some other time." She then pressed a button on the panel of her belt and instantly Rose and the bounty hunter were gone.

The Doctor ran both hands into his hair and began to pace. He shouted, "A temporal teleporter! Rassilion, I should have guessed that. She's working for the Time Lords, they would have given her something like that."

Jack: "Well, we didn't! We got to get her back. Doc, what are they going to do her? Are they going to dissect her? Is she going to become their god damn guinea pig?"

"No! I won't let that happen to Rose."

"Well, how the heck do you except to find them? That thing she used looked an awful like my manipulator, maybe, maybe it's got some kind of signature. Can you trace it since she jumped inside the TARDIS?"

"Nope, I can do better than that. I can retort it to the source."

The Doctor than made a mad dash around the console and pulled and pressed multipliable switches. Unexpectedly, he paused and turned to Jack and threw the last lever. He smiled wildly and said, "Jack, we're going to visit the last city of the Time Lords."

* * *

The last city of the Time Lords was encased in a large dome that floated in the stratosphere of an alien world known as Nugget. It shimmed and glowed with golden temporal energy and pulsed with the mastered rhythm of time and space. It was a world self-contained and self-sufficient in almost every way. It had escaped the Time War by the skin of its teeth by utilizing its ability to shift into other parallel worlds. It was a marvel of technology and the Time Lords called it Omega.

Jack looked at the city through the view screen with the Doctor and said, "It kind of looks like a snow-globe."

"What? That's all you have to say? It's a self-contained temporal environmental facility with the uncanny ability to travel to other universes and survive the Time War and all you got to say is it looks like a snow-globe?"

"…It's kind of pretty?"

The Doctor laughed and said, "Yes, it does look kind pretty."

"Doc, are you ok? I mean, it's got to be hard. I mean, here you were thinking you were the last for years and now, there they are, your people."

"Yeah, well, it explains why I never felt them up here, in my mind. They were hiding in another world. I admit, though it is rather brilliant that I'm not the last. It's quiet genius really—but them and me, we never really got along. I was always a rebel—never one to follow the rules."

"Oh, I'm sure you were always the black sheep, but seriously Doc, that thing looks tighter than Fort Knocks. How are we going to get in?"

"Simple, we break in."

* * *

The Doctor punched several buttons on the console and initiated the dematerialize sequence. Jack hovered close by and awaited the TARDIS to land. With a bit of turbulence, the time-ship finally landed within the bounds of Omega City.

Jack ran up to the Doctor and gave him a cheerful hug and shouted, "Doc! You did it!"

"Really it was no big real for a brilliant and dashing man like me. After all, the TARDIS was built by Time Lords, so why shouldn't she be able to get in? But, I wouldn't celebrate too soon, that little trick was only a one-time deal. Come on Captain, we've got to go save Rose."

When the Doctor and Jack exited the TARDIS they found themselves surrounded by guards. The Doctor gave them a smile and said, "Hello, I'm the Doctor and this is Captain Jack. Have any of you seen a pink and yellow earth woman and yeah high, goes by the name of Rose, that's Rose Tyler otherwise known as the Bad Wolf?"

In response, none of the guards answered or moved an inch. They remained stoic and still, but the two men heard the sounds of gasp and whispers at the mention of "Bad Wolf" and "Doctor" from the small gathering crowd.

Then suddenly, they heard someone in the crowd shout, "Bad Wolf, that man spoke of the Bad Wolf. She must exist. She must be real. Fortuna is real! The Goddess of Time has come! She was the one who saved us all!"

However, another voice cried out, "No! It is blasphemy! It is an abomination! I tell you that creature is unnatural. It's dangerous! It should be stopped!"

"SILENCE! Silence all of you!" said a finely dressed Time Lord to the crowd. He quietly approached the guards and stood in front of the Doctor and the Captain. He was wearing a long dark robe with a large high collar and a tight fitted cap. He looked like an extra on Star Trek, but he didn't fit into what Jack imaged a Time Lord should look. He was surprisingly youthful and didn't look old at all. The only thing about the man that appeared Time Lord-ish was his icy blue eyes. They seemed to rage with an energy that was totally otherworldly.

The Time Lord spoke, "I am Jarva. I am the president of Omega City, the last great city of Gallifrey. Who are you? And what do you want?"

The Doctor anxiously fidgeted back and forth and gave the man his best winning smile. He replied, "Hello, Jarva! As I said before, I'm the Doctor and this is Jack. And I've come to collect Rose."

Jarva gasped, "T-the Doctor? It is indeed an unexpected honor." The Time Lord then gave the Doctor a gentle bow, but the Doctor swiftly tried to stop him.

"No, no, no, no, no—don't, don't do that, really that isn't necessary."

"Please, I know I shouldn't, you are right. It is unbecoming of a person in my position—but my personal opinion dictates otherwise. Come, let us talk, but perhaps in a more suitable environment. Come, to the Capital."

* * *

As they walk, Jack and the Doctor lagged behind as they walked with the armed escort to the Capital building. Jack leaned towards the Doctor and whispered in his ear, "What the heck was that about? I thought you said you weren't popular? That Jarva guy was practically awestruck by you."

"I haven't got a clue."

"Well, what about all that mob action about Bad Wolf? It seems to me like the crowds divided. Some of those people think she's god while the other half seem to think she's the devil."

"Jack, we don't know what's going on, but my top priority is finding Rose safe and sound."

* * *

Once inside a wonderfully decorated room inside the Capital, the Doctor and Jack were left to talk with Jarva alone. He was seated behind his desk while the Doctor sat reclined and Jack stood against the far wall.

Jarva said, "I have always been deeply interested in meeting you, Doctor. I had never expected that we would ever cross paths. However, you aren't exactly what I imaged."

"Oh? I suppose people hardly expect my devilishly good looks. But, Jarva you talk about me as if you know me. Does my reputation preceded me?"

"No, as I said, we've never crossed paths. And I have heard of your reputation, but nothing good. No—all my good opinions come from stories from my older sister, Romana."

"Romana?"

"Yes, she thought highly of you."

"Is she? Is she alive?"

"I don't know. Last I heard she was on Gallifrey during the Time War. I am sorry to say we were never close, but I did respect her. You are the first survivor we've come into contact with since the City was launched."

The Doctor fell silent. He hadn't thought about Romana for years. It was nice to know that someone from her family had survived the Time War. Jarva seemed to be following in her footsteps by taking on the role of president, yet still he didn't know much about him. All he did know was that he must have gone through a recent regeneration.

"Jarva, where's Rose? Where are you keeping Bad Wolf?"

The president seemed troubled and the Doctor unexpectedly stood up and pounded his fist onto the table.

"Jarva, where is Rose Tyler?"

"She is being held at the Research Lab, I can't return her to you, not before the scientist have determined all they can. It's out of my hands."

Jack shouted, "What do you mean 'it's out of your hands'? What the hell are they doing to her?"

"You don't understand, you aren't a Time Lord. There are rules and regulations. You're lucky they didn't immediately take you into their custody too. You are a temporal fact. It is only my personal respect of the Doctor and nothing else that is preventing your arrest from happening."

"Jarva, what's happening? Please, I need to know."

"I'm not sure how much you know Doctor, but sometime ago an unknown entity known as the Bad Wolf came near our city and did an extraordinary thing. Our city has been set adrift since the Time War in a mad escape to evade the Delaks, but several Delaks were able to follow us through the rift. For years now we have been able to shield ourselves from their attack, but we knew that eventually they'd be able to break our defenses. Bad Wolf came to us and reduced them to dust in a matter of minutes. She was approached by a team of investigators to assess her danger, but the opinion was split. Some people thought she was a threat and even more dangerous than all the Delaks combined while others saw her as Fortuna, the Time Goddess incarnated. It has been utter chaos since then."

The Doctor processed what the president said. It was pretty much what Rose said, but she didn't say anything about being approached by a team of Time Lords. It was possible that she wasn't aware of them while she was under the Wolf's spell. However, he did understand Jarva's dilemma. He knew since being once president of all of Gallifrey himself that red tape could be a real pain. The man was most likely swamped with political upheaval. Bad Wolf was an element that defied all of the Time Lords' teachings.

Oh, what a field day they'd have if they knew the circumstances of her creation. It would really blow their minds if they knew Rose became Bad Wolf solely to protect his sorry hide. Plus, she did make Jack a fact as well.

"Lord President, you have to put a stop to those tests on Bad Wolf."

"I'm sorry Doctor, but I don't take orders from you. And I am in agreement with the scientist. Bad Wolf is potentially a great risk not to just Time Lords, but to all of Time and Space."

Jack ran to Jarva to grab him, but the Doctor stopped him. He shouted, "You damn ingrates! She bloody saved your sorry city and this is how you repay her?"

"Jack! Come on. Let's go."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Jack said to the Doctor, "We got to do something! We have to save Rose. God only knows what they plan to do with her."

"Jack, I know, but we need a plan. According to the TARDIS, the Research Lab is locked down tight. I can't pull another site to site transport, remember it was a one time deal. And we can't go a guns a blazing either, it's too risky, it doesn't matter if you're immortal or not, something could go wrong."

"Maybe we could put the squeeze on Jarva?"

"No—no the man won't budge, he's scared just like everybody else. If we go and try and force him to make a decision he'd likely set his guards loose on us."

"So, what do you suggest?"

Suddenly, Jack caught sight of Love walking across his path. Jack turned to his friend and gave him a wink. Jack quickly ran up to Love and wrestled her arms behind her back, but she was strong and was able to wriggle out and soon the two broke out into a fight.

The Doctor casually walked up to Jack and pulled out his gun and shot Love in the stomach.

* * *

Love fell to the ground clutching the wound with her hand. Thick green blood began to flow freely from the opening and out onto the stone floor. Jack took a step back from her body and turned to the Doctor. He was totally shocked. The Doctor had murdered her in cold blood.

"Doctor, what the hell has gotten into you? Murder isn't your style."

"Relax, Captain. Love's a Pendra. She can self-regenerate every cell in her body. Help me get her into the TARDIS."

However, once the two men got Love on her feet to sprang into action and tried to escape, but she was unable to free herself from them both.

"Hey, take it easy, beautiful. I know what it feels like to be shot and it can be a real bitch."

"Awe, are you trying to be cute? Please, you ruined a perfectly nice shirt."

Meanwhile, the Doctor dug deep inside his pockets and successfully pulled out a pair of handcuffs with a triumphant shout.

"Aha!"

"Doc, do I even want to know?"

"Nope." The Doctor then put the cuffs on Love and they hauled her into the TARDIS.

The Doctor rubbed his ear and thought out loud, "Love certainty recovered rather quickly. In fact, it was loads faster than Love from the other universe. Hum…there must be some slight differences between this Love and that Love. I wonder if this Love—no, this is getting confusing—I'll call this one, Tem and the first one, Love. Ok, so Tem, I wonder if she was ever a healer like Love was?"

"Doc, focus!"

"Oh, right! So, Tem how would you like to be employed?"

"You've got to be kidding me?"

"Nope, no joke. I need someone to help get Jack and me into the Research Lab and aid us in getting back Rose. I'm guessing you've been there before and they know your face, so it should be a piece of banana cream pie. What do you say?"

Jack asked, "Doc, are you serious? She's a bounty hunter."

"So, she's for hire to the highest bidder, am I right? I'll make it worth your while. I'll even throw in an evening with Jack."

"Hey! Since when do I become a part of the payment?"

"Oh, like you wouldn't."

Jack smiled and said, "Doc, you know me too well."

Tem sat herself up right and said, "Let me get this straight. You want me to turn on my last employers and break into a lab and get back the mark?"

"Yes, is that a problem?"

"I don't like being shot."

"Who doesn't?"

"But, you've got guts. I like that. However, my price has tripled, 6 million."

Jack shouted, "That's highway robbery!"

"You shot me!"

"Jack—no. Tem, it's a deal."

The Doctor than moved towards the handcuffs and removed them from the eerie-eyed woman's hands. However, the Doctor looked her dead in the eye and said to her, "Tem, I want your word. I know that Pendra take promises very seriously. I want your sacred word by the stars, Tem."

Tem broke her gaze with the Doctor and turned away from his stare. She said, "Interesting, no one has every asked me to give them my sacred word for centuries. In fact, those Omega Time Lords said they knew they wanted me for the job because of my discredit to the Sacred Tree of Life."

"Oh, but I know something about you that they don't. I know that your people would never willingly give you permission to become a bounty hunter. You ran away, but there's nothing wrong with that, I ran away too. No—I know what you worship, Captain. You worship the stars. You still have your honor."

Tem laughed and said, "What's the point in having an honor if my sacred word is based on something that none of my people understand?"

"But, I understand. I'm a traveler like you."

Tem walked up the Doctor and slowly caressed the side of his face. She said, "Yes, I believe you do. I think your trying to make me believe—but that was too long ago. I'm not what you think I am. I've lived for nearly a thousand years. I've roamed the cosmos for nearly all that time and I've watched worlds being born and die. I've healed the sick and slew the wicked. I don't have the benefit of time travel. I move along the slow path. I am a near immortal among mortals."

"Oh, please! You think I haven't used that speech before to get out of answering a question? Come on, Tem do I have your word or not?"

Tem shoved away from the Doctor and shouted, "Fine! You've got my word. By the stars I swear it. I'll help you get back your girlfriend. Come on then, into the lion's den."

* * *

Jack walked up to the Doctor and asked, "So, what's the plan?"

Tem laughed and gave Jack a warm smile, "No, handsome. The first thing we're going to do is a costume change. Doctor, I think when in Rome you should do as the Romans do. Dress the part and we take Jack in as a new toy for the Time Lords."

"Hey, why do I have to be bait?"

"You're the unknown alien here, not us and besides it's just an excuse to get into the Lab."

The Doctor replied, "Right. Nothing stranger than Jack."

"Oh, gang up on the guy who can't die."

"But, it's perfect. You being a fact is a legitimate excuse to get you into the Lab. We just need Tem to locate Rose and pop her out."

"Yeah, but how do we leave the city?"

"It's alright boys, leave that to me."

* * *

TARDIS wardrobe:

The Doctor rummaged through his vast collection of clothes in search for his old Time Lord robes. It had been years and years since he last had to put one on. They were frightfully uncomfortable and remembered greatly disliking their lack of design. At last, he found what he was looking for and turned to dress behind a screen while Jack idly picked at odd pieces in the collection.

He picked up a weird long scarf and twisted it about his neck and began chatting with the Doctor. Jack said, "Come on, Doc. Time's a wasting."

"Hold on, it isn't easy getting into one of those things. I absolutely despise them. I can't believe I got talked into doing this."

"Please, Doc, you know you'd do anything for Rose. But, what I don't get is this whole honor and word thing with Tem. Is that all you need to trust her? What if turns us in?"

The Doctor emerged for the screen fully dressed and answered, "Jack, her people have very high standards. Breaking a promise is like breaking the law. If she broke a promise back on Pendra, she'd be turned into a tree for a few years depending on the circumstances."

"Wow, that's harsh."

"Yup, but terrible cost effective. There aren't any prisons on Pendra, just groves. Oi! Jack put that scarf back."

Jack pulled the scraf off his neck and gave the Doc a broad smile. He said, "I didn't think you'd be so touchy, but hey look at you. You look—so—oh, what's the word? Regal?"

"Enough of that. Come on."

* * *

True to Tem's word, getting into the Research Lab was a breeze. The guards believed their cover story and the Doctor and Tem brought Jack deep inside the fortress-like facility and were able to locate Rose in no time at all. It was a smooth operation and the Doctor was glad that it was.

They eventually found Rose encased in a large clear tube and she looked like a bug in a bell jar. A strange machine was vibrating on either side and the ex-time agent didn't have a clue what it was doing. However, the Doctor immediately accessed the controls and was able to free his precious girl from inside and gathered her up in his arms.

"Rose! Rose, are you alright?"

"Muh? D-Doctor? Is it really you?"

"Yes. Come on, we've got to go."

Then, without warning the entire building was blaring with the sound of an alarm. Red lights began to shine over the entrance of the lab and the room was then flooded with guards. The Doctor saw a strange group of men dressed in black come in the lab as well and Jarva was among them.

Jarva walked up to the Doctor and said, "I cannot allow you to leave with that woman. She is in custody of the Time Lord Council. She is a possible threat to us all and I will not permit it."


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

The Doctor casually leaned towards Jarva and said, "You know, your big sis would be _really_ disappointed in you right about now."

"Silence! Guards seize them!"

However, the guards were halted from drawing nearer as the two Captains stepped forward and drew their weapons at the Time Lords.

Tem turned her glance towards Jack and said, "That's a nice pistol Tex, but you should really turn that in for an upgrade."

"Trust me, I would if I could honey, but there aren't many obtains in early 21st century."

Tem tossed Jack an extra gun from the holster at her hip and he easily caught it with his left hand. He smiled and replied, "Nice, triple setting laser fire-rode. Oh, Santa has been good to you."

"Well, handsome I wasn't all together honest about being a hunter. I'm also a space pirate too."

"Well, maybe we could go treasure hunting together in the future?"

Suddenly, the Doctor ended his companions' conversation by shouting to Jarva, "Besides, having apparently two captain hormones on my team. I think you should know they both can't die, so out numbering us really isn't a problem. I suggest you stop and let us go."

"I told you Doctor, I cannot permit Rose Tyler to leave. Do you really think you can violently force your way out of this facility?"

Tem smiled and said, "Watch me." She then pulled the trigger and astonishly bathed the entire room in an overwhelming flash of white light.

When the light finally faded the Doctor and his companions were gone.

* * *

The Doctor and his group crashed unexpectedly on the TARDIS floor. The whole group startled laughing like mad on the ground as they slowly began to straighten themselves out.

The Doctor bounced up and eased Rose to her feet and in a merry voice said, "Oh that was absolutely brilliant! Using a triple setting laser fire-rode, set on flare and blinding the whole lot of them while using a temporal teleporter to zap ourselves out of their like magic—wonderful! Now, all we have to do is use the shield harmonic signature Tem obtained from one of the Omega TARDIS, which I'm sure she got by the most honest means and use it to pass through the City's dome."

The Doctor ran to the console when he finished seating Rose on the jump seat and called the Captains to the controls. It wasn't long before they got the dematerialization sequence underway and the TARDIS finally made it into the freedom of space and then into the splendor of the Time Vortex.

* * *

Hours later, the TARDIS crew were gathered in the galley and sharing a bit of tea time and a chance to unwind. At the moment, the TARDIS team were having a laugh at Tem, who had never drank a cup of tea in her life which the Doctor thought pretty strange considering she came from a culture that was extremely zealous about marketing herbal.

"Why would I want to drink a brew of old dried out leaves boiled in water if I'm not sick?"

Rose said to the Doctor, "You know it does sound odd when you put it that way."

The Doctor replied, "But it taste brilliant! And plus, it's got lots of anti-toxins and natural radicals which are fantastic in cleansing the body of impurities."

"I don't get it. My body naturally disposes of all internal impurities. In fact, my blood is considered the universe's top biological purifier of adverse substances."

The Doctor huffed, "Yeah, and it's one of the universe most deadliest poisons. And anyway, why would anyone want to drink somebody else's blood? It's terrible nasty—but maybe if you're a vampire or a Vhampr from the Jop sector you might. Though, there isn't anything leisurely or enjoyable about sipping a nice hot cup of plant juice."

Jack turned to Tem and said, "Don't listen to him. I'm sure you taste absolutely divine."

Tem smiled coyly at Jack before finally standing up from her seat. She replied, "There isn't any doubt about it, but I think it's time I cut out."

Rose asked, "You're leaving? Where're you going to go?"

The Doctor added, "The Time Lords might try to track you down."

Tem laughed and reached over and gave the Doctor a quick kiss on the lips and ruffed his hair. She said, "Don't worry about me bed-head. I can manage on my own."

Jack rose from his seat too and said, "Yeah, I should be heading back to my team. Though, you know Captain, I wouldn't mind if you came along. What do you say? Fancy a little down time on Earth? After all, we near immortals got to stick together?"

Tem smiled, "Alright. I'll give it a try, but I have to warn you, I never stay put for every long."

Jack gave her a wink before stated, "Duly noted."

The Doctor got up and made his way to the control room. He shouted, "Alright! One earth bound trip coming right up."

* * *

The Doctor and Rose said their good-byes to Jack and Tem and promised to keep in touch. The Doctor like Tem, told Jack that he didn't have fears about being on the run from the Time Lords—after all, he'd been doing it most of his life.

When it was just the two of them, Rose and the Doctor found themselves quietly seating in the control room while sailing in the Vortex. Rose leaned over and rested her elbows on her knees while her hands supported her head and let out a sigh.

"So…"

"So…"

"Back to the same old life?"

"No! Rose, it isn't going to be the same. I'm done with being a coward. I'm done pretending I don't want more. I'm done being afraid. I've learned a lot while I was in Love's world—I learned—I learned that I've lost faith in you. I learned I've lost faith in us, but I do now. I want you to know that I love you, that I'll never stop loving you. I'll love you forever and it doesn't matter how long that forever is, just as long as I can have you for however long that may be."

"But—"

"But what?"

"How do I know you won't try to do something stupid like make up your mind what's best for me and send me away?"

"Oh—well, I guess y-you can't really…"

"Doctor!"

"Oh! I have it! I, the Doctor, the most brilliant Time Lord and utter genius of the whole of time and space promise that I will not try to send Rose Marion Tyler away without her consent or suffer the most terrible of punishments in a Tyler slap."

"Promise?"

"Cross my hearts and hope to die!"

"Stick a needle in your eye?"

"Rose…I want you to trust me. I want you to know you've got me."

"Don't you get it? You've always had me…it was you…it was you who left me. I-I promised."

Rose walked up to the Doctor and hugged him tight. She rested her head over his chest and listen to the beat of his two hearts and sighed. The Doctor circled his arms gently around her body and slowly began to sway.

"Rose, I'll never leave you again, I swear, not if I can help. I'll move all of time and space to be with you. Please—let me be with you?"

After a moment, she said, "Tell me again."

The Doctor smiled into her hair. He knew she'd give him a chance. He was certain he'd have to prove worth of her trust again, but Rassilion he don't care how long it took as long as he was able to be by her side. He felt saved. He overjoyed.

Tenderly raised her head up to capture her lips in a kiss. The kiss was sweet and seductively slow and left Rose yearning for more. She had for so longed for this otherworldly man. His light touch had fueled her nerves and set them on fire that she found her pulse racing with need. She hadn't even realized she had shut her eyes as she savored the alien taste of his lips.

He smiled at her lovely and serene face and gradually, the Doctor brushed away the golden hair over her shoulder and lightly planted a kiss onto the warm smooth skin of her neck. At the contact, Rose mewed and sank deeper into his embrace.

The Doctor then pressed his lips close to her and whispered, "Rose Tyler, I love you, always."

Rose felt so perfect. She had been waiting so long for those exact words. Since becoming the Bad Wolf again, she knew all that had come to pass for her Doctor. She knew how guarded his hearts had become. How hard it had been to turn away and forbid himself for ever seeing her as a dying Rose. He never wanted to gaze upon her as frail or failing. She knew what he had said was true. He didn't have faith in their love. He wasn't content in holding on only to the splendor of their love for what it was and for however fleeting it maybe, but now he had changed, now it could all change. The possibilities for forever now appeared within reach—Bad Wolf could make it so.

Rose asked, "How long are you going to stay with me?"

"Forever."

End.

* * *

Finished! I made a change. The ending is a tiny bit different than it was before. For some reason the happy ending was just a little too neat. I had to put in the Bad Wolf vibe, cause there isn't anything like girl-power.

Please, review. Thanks a bunch!


End file.
